The Way She Feels
by LoveXbitesXsoXdoXI
Summary: Jess Hardy is doing her best to escape her drug addicted past and she hopes that her chance at training to become a diva will be a fresh start. Dean Ambrose is assigned to be her mentor and sparks fly between them. But as drama within the Hardy family unfolds between her and her older brother Matt, will Jeff and Dean be able to save her or will this time be too late? Dean/OC R&R!
1. Chapter 1

Jess submerged herself under the warm bath water as memories began to plague her., the voices of her desperate brothers ringing in her ears.

"_Jess? Jess are you in there?" Matt's voice called into the rancid smelling, dingy women's bathroom at the bar. She was sitting on the floor in one of the stalls near the very end of the room, fighting the overbearing darkness as she pulled the needle out of her arm and let it work it's magic. With her eyes closed she felt herself begin to slip down into her heroine induced coma._

"_Shit call an ambulance!" She heard Jeff cry out as he knelt in front of her and began to lightly hit her face in an attempt to wake her up. "Jess, come on, don't do this to me, Jess!"_

She quickly resurfaced and pushed her hair back out of her face as someone began to knock on the bathroom door.

"Hey Jess, you almost done in there? I got something for ya." Jeff's voice said through the door.

"Be right out." She called back as she pulled the plug and got out to dry herself off. She went over to the steamed up mirror and used her hand to clear some of it away as she looked at herself. It was on this day 2 years ago that she had almost lost her life to a heroine overdose and the tiny needle mark scars on her forearms posed as a constant reminder of her shame filled past. It was thanks to her brothers that she had managed to overcome her addiction and stay clean, even though every now and again she had the urge to relapse.

"What's up?" She asked as she emerged from the steamy bathroom fully clothed. Jeff smiled at her as he held out a piece of paper.

"I sent more of those video's of you wrestling in to a few Scouts at some major wrestling company's and WWE sent this contract in the mail for you, along with this letter." HE said and Jess eyes lit up in disbelief as she read it over.

"No way, oh my god Jeff thank you!" She said as she threw her arms around his neck. Wrestling was one of the ways Matt and Jeff had taught her to cope and overcome the drugs, making her become addicted to the adrenaline rush instead. Becoming a professional wrestler was one of her dreams in order to better her life.

"Hey, you deserve it. You can quit your job at the waffle house and community wrestling and actually get out there and travel the world." He said as he kissed her forehead. "But they did give you stipulations in this letter and you need to bring both of those with you when you go to sign the contract." Jeff said as he handed her the letter. She quickly skimmed over it.

"So I have a mentor named Dean Ambrose that is suppose to teach me how to execute and do moves properly. I thought I did do them properly." Jess questioned as she looked up at Jeff. The letter clearly stated that she had a lot of training to go through before she could actually wrestle but she had a lot of potential.

"That's how a lot of people are starting out now, but you shouldn't pass up on this opportunity. We've been trying for years and this is a once in a lifetime thing. Don't blow it." Jeff said as he tapped his finger on his younger sisters nose. "I'm proud of you. You've gone through a lot these past two years and now you're finally getting rewarded." He said making her smile.

"Thank you Jeff, if it hadn't been for you and Matt..." She began but Jeff signaled for her to stop. She understood that the eldest Hardy was in living and always got pissed off when she brought the subject up. "How long is he gonna be mad at me for?" She asked Jeff in a whisper so Matt wouldn't hear her.

"I think he's gotten long past the being pissed part and he's still getting over being hurt but he'll come around. We almost lost you, remember?" Jeff said and she nodded her head before walking around him and heading into the living room.

"Matt I got good news." She said with a smile as she sat in a recliner across from him. He looked at her for a moment, his lips set in a firm line.

"I know, Jeff already told me. Congratulations." He said, his tone flat and insincere. Jeff was leaning against the door frame as he watched the two of them.

"Thanks." She said in a low voice causing Matt to look over at her again. He felt a pang of guilt seeing her look so depressed again.

"Listen I didn't mean for it to sound..." He said trying to make the situation better but Jess stood before he could finish and stormed from the room. Matt looked up at Jeff who was shaking his head at him.

"She's trying really hard and you just keep shuttin' her down." He said before he left too. Matt put his head in his hands as he let out a huff. It was still hard for him to let go of the fact that his drug addicted sister had cost their father a fortune before he passed away and then almost ended up killing herself. He remembered that night all to well and it was hard to drive from his mind whenever she was around.

_Jeff was sat in the waiting room as Matt paced around, hoping it wasn't too late to save her. She was his responsibility and he should have been there for her, he should have seen something like this coming and he should have stopped her. If she died tonight it would be on his concision because he knew and he didn't even try to help her. "Please Jess, Stay with me." Matt said as he look up at the white ceiling and began to pray. "If you make it out of this I swear I'm gonna be there for you and I'll make sure you get off that shit." He whispered as tears slipped down his face_

"I did my best." Matt said as his eyes began to water with anger at the memory. He kept his promise and that was good enough for him.


	2. Chapter 2

"Jeff you're going the wrong way." Jess said as she pulled her sunglasses up to rest on the top of her head. She squinted as she looked at the map trying to read the tiny words that all seemed to jumble together.

"I'm telling you this is they way. I've wrestled in this arena before so I know how to get there." Jeff argued as he wiped his hand down his chin.

"Oh, yeah you're right." She said as she found where they were on the map after she flipped it from being upside down. She was nervous and it showed in the strained way that she held the the map.

"Ain't nothin' to worry about." Jeff said as he they pulled up to a stop light and he looked over at her. She looked paler than usual and her hands were shaky. Then his eyes trailed up her arms. You wouldn't even know she'd had scarring from the needles she covered them up so good. When he looked back up Jess was gazing at him with a slight frown.

"You can't see 'em right?" She asked as she gave her arms a once over.

"Not at all." Jeff replied. Jess fought the urge the tell Jeff what Matt had said to her before they'd left.

"_Hide your shame Jessica, nobody likes a drug addict." _His voice rang in her head filled with so much hatred towards her it made her nauseous. And he'd called her a drug addict as if she still was one.

"Jess you okay?" Jeff asked when she put her head against the window and began to rub her forehead. She wasn't okay, in fact she was far from it but she forced the sick feeling down and put on her best smile.

"Of course I am, I'm just excited. Can't wait to meet this mentor of mine, I hope he's nice." She said as they made a final turn into the parking lot of a big building. It felt like her stomach jumped up into her throat as she got out of the car and stared at it.

"Well here we are, you ready for this?" Jeff asked as he joined around the back of his car. She nodded at him and they headed inside. She fiddled with her hands in front of her as they began to look for the general managers office, Jeff putting his arm around her shoulders brought her little comfort but not much. They finally found it and Jess knew she had to go it alone, so with papers in her hand she knocked and waited for a response.

"Come in." A voice called and she opened it enough for her to slip inside. Brad Maddox looked up at her from his stack of papers and motioned her to have a seat. "And who might you be?" He asked as she took the chair across from him and placed the papers up on the desk.

"I'm Jessica Hardy, I got these in the mail yesterday and wanted to come and sign them." She said as Brad took the papers and looked them over.

"So I take it you've read and understand the terms in order for you to be accepting this position with us then?" He asked as he eyed her over the paper.

"Yes I have." She said as she sat stiffly, her stomach feeling as if it was holding a gymnastics match. Brad took out a pen and quickly scribbled something down on both papers before handing them over to her with a pen. His signature graced both lines and all that was needed was her own. With a smile and shaky hand Jess signed her contract.

"Welcome to RAW, Ms. Hardy. I'll introduce you to Dean now" Brad said as he stood to shake her hand. She followed him out of his office and saw Jeff leaning against the wall waiting for her.

"So how'd it go?" He asked her and she beamed at him.

"You're looking at RAWS newest diva." She said in a giddy voice as her brother hugged her. Brad cleared his throat gathering both of their attention.

"Sorry, I'll meet you in the car." Jeff said before giving a respect nod to Brad and making his way to the exit.

"So are you related to Matt and Jeff Hardy?" Brad asked as he began to make his way down numerous halls.

"Yeah they're my brothers. I'm the youngest and only girl." Jess said. They stopped outside the mens locker room where guys were coming in and out as they were preparing for the evenings show. Brad knocked before entering and disappeared inside. Jess stood with her arms crossed and head low as she leaned against the wall, trying to stay out of everyone's way.

"Now isn't really a good time for introductions." A mans voice protested as Brad opened the door and came out. Dean came out with nothing but a towel around his waist. Jess felt her face completely flush before a blush began to make it's way up her neck.

"Now is as good a time as ever. Dean this is Jessica Hardy you're new trainee. I am giving you 1 month to get her ring ready so she can make a proper debut." Brad said and Dean's eyes went wide.

"Only 1 month? That isn't a lot of time!" He said and Brad looked over at Jess.

"I've seen the video's of her wrestling, she's already a decent wrestler she just needs to learn knew moves and how to sell them." Brad said before walking away and leaving the two of them in silence.

"Anyway it's good to meet you." Jess said as she looked up at his face. He was a tall, attractive man, but he didn't seem to friendly.

"Yeah likewise." He said with distaste as he gave her a once over. Jess was a pretty girl with her long, wavy honey brown hair and Grey eyes but Dean wasn't all that impressed.

"So when did you want to start training?" She asked him and he rolled his eyes.

"We'll start tomorrow morning at 10 am sharp. Meet me at the gym. Don't be late and don't waste my time, I didn't sign up for this." He said before going back into the locker room. She quickly made her escape out to the parking lot where Jeff was lounging in the car with his hat over his face in an attempt to take an afternoon nap. He shot upwards when Jess got in and closed the door.

"So did you meet him?" Jeff asked as he started the car. She nodded her head but stayed silent. When they reached Jeff's home she felt her excitement slowly being to slip away. Her mentor seemed like a completely asshole. So the next day Jess was up bright and early, throwing on a pair of shorts and lose fitting tank top before heading in town to the gym. When she walked in Dean was already there and at the bench press.

"You're late." He said when he noticed her walk over to him.

"Actually, I'm early. By half an hour." Jess said correcting him. He finished up his reps and sat up, wiping the seat from his face.

"Doesn't matter let's go." He said and they went into a room next door that was covered with mats. Dean didn't go lightly on her either, he pushed her to the max and was always demanding more from her.

"Can we take a small break." Jess said out of breath as she gripped her cramping side. They had been going for almost an hour non-stop. She was used to rough housing with her brothers, but this was just ridiculous. She felt like she was nothing more to him than a punching bag.

"Fine but only 2 minutes." He said as he walked away from her to the side of the room. She grabbed her water bottle and sunk down against the wall, sweating dripping down her forehead.

"Is this how hard you train everyday?" Jess asked Dean as he began to fix his wrist tape.

"I train harder. You almost ready to go?" He asked impatiently as Jess stood, her muscles and joints screaming with every move she made.

"How much longer are we gonna do this for?" She asked him and he gave her a grin.

"Tired already?" He asked in a challenging tone. Jess wasn't one to back away from a challenge but this was the first time she'd ever trained this hard and she didn't want to hurt herself.

"Only a little." She said with a smirk of her own as they began to go at it again.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Thank you to all that Faved and Followed the story, it means a lot to me! :)**

As the days passed Jess could feel it all coming back to her, her addiction to the adrenaline that coursed through her veins with every punch, kick and duck as her and Dean trained together. She was starting to become grateful for the pain after ever session because it meant that she was improving.

"Your agility is getting better but you really need to work on your endurance and footwork. I could go on like this for hours." Dean said barely breaking a sweat as he held his arms up in front of his face while Jess stood there huffing and puffing in front of him, She dodged another punch he threw at her and went to kick him in the gut but he caught her leg and she ended up on her back. She lost her breath momentarily as she laid staring up at the ceiling.

"So I take it we're done for the day?" Dean questioned as he held his hand out for her and helped her to her feet. This was only their 6th day training together and she already felt like all her energy was drained, clearly she was out of shape.

"When are you gonna teach me some moves?" Jess asked as she began to lightly massage her left shoulder. She landed wrong on that last fall.

"Probably in a week or so. You really need to improve your endurance first, it's honestly kind of pathetic." Dean said and his words stung Jess. She was working her ass off and all she got from him was negativity, except for his comment about her agility.

"Well then give me pointers!" She said as her arms went up into the air at her sides.

"Hop your ass up on a treadmill and run for as long as you can _every_ day." Dean said as he looked over at her. She knew that if he had a choice, Dean would drop being her mentor in a heartbeat and go back to what he usually did. She had watched him put his heart into wrestling on TV but when he trained with her there was no spark in him at all, he was like a robot going through the motions.

"You know what Dean, I'll ask Brad if he can find me a mentor who _actually_ wants to train me instead of treating me like I'm some kind of chore." Jess said finally at her wits end.

"Don't bother I already tried, nobody else wanted the task so you're stuck with me for another 3 weeks so you better get used to it." Dean said as he glared over at her before leaving the room. Jess grabbed a towel off the floor and wiped the sweat from her face before putting it around her neck and wincing as the pain in her shoulder flared up again. She drove back to the house she lived in with her brother Jeff, only to find it empty when she got there. There was a note on the dining room table that said he'd just gone to do some errands and he'd be back in a bit. She hopped in the shower in hopes that the hot water would help ease some of the pain she felt all over.

"Hey Jess you home? I got take-out." Jeff called in the house and she jumped out of the shower as her stomach grumbled at the thought of food. She got dressed and joined him in the kitchen as the smell of Chinese greeted her. "Hungry?" He asked her as he held out a plate.

"Starving actually." She said as she began to pile food onto her plate.

"How's training going?" Jeff asked as he pulled two beers out the fridge and placed one in front of her. Jess shook her head and pushed it away. "Come on, have a beer with your big brother, it'll be like old times." He said as he winked at her. She popped the top off and took a small sip before setting it back down. God how she missed the taste.

"You know if Matt was here he'd kill us both." She said as she took another swig.

"Jess you're a grown ass woman, Matt doesn't control your life or mine. Stop being so worried about him and what he thinks and enjoy your damn beer." Jeff said making her laugh but he was right, Matt didn't control her life. But he was a major part of it and she wanted it to be the way it was before, when he didn't look at her disgusted or see her only as a drug addict.

"You're right, Cheers." She said as they clinked their bottles together.

"So as I was askin', how's training going?" Jeff asked again and Jess swallowed the bit of beer left in her mouth before answering him.

"Honestly he's kind of a dick. Won't teach me any moves and just constantly puts me down. I told him I was gonna find myself a new mentor but he said he already tried." She said as she finished off the bottle. And set it aside.

"Another?" Jeff asked but Jess shook her head limiting herself to one. She didn't want to run the risk of her other brother dropping in for a surprise visit and catching her. "So what's his deal then?" Jeff asked confused and Jess just shook her head.

"Beats me but whatever, I'll deal with it. Don't really have much choice anyway." She said as she began to shovel food into her mouth.

"Hey slow down before you choke." Jeff said as he slapped her on the back and made her spit some food out while laughing and taking a bite of his own. Jess knocked her hip into his as he tried to swallow and soon they were going back and forth hitting each other playfully as they ate.

"Looks like I'm just in time for dinner." Matts voice came from behind them and they turned with a smile that he returned. "Mmm Chinese my favorite." He said as he grabbed a plate and began to dig in. His eyes landed on the two beer bottles in front of Jeff and Jess and he felt anger stir in the pit of his stomach. "Are you drinking again?" He asked in an accusing tone as he picked the bottle up and looked at Jess.

"It was only one." She in disbelief. Leave it to Matt to completely kill the mood.

"Don't blame her Matt I gave it to her and told her it was okay." Jeff said jumping to her defense.

"Jeff this isn't okay! Do you want to see her travel down that path again, her path of self destruction that cost our father thousands of dollars to support her habits?" He said infuriated and Jess sunk further into herself. Jeffs eyes blazed to life.

"Matt stop living in the fucking past! That was 2 years ago and she has done everything but kiss your ass to get back in your good book. She's our sister, god dammit!" Jeff said and Matt threw the bottle at the wall behind Jess where it shattered, the shards flying about and landing around her.

"I worked hard and sacrificed all of my time to get her on the straight path and I refuse to let you ruin that. I'm not going to let her destroy our family again!" Matt said and the tears sprang to Jess' eyes at her brothers words.

"Jesus Matt would you listen to yourself for a minute?" Jeff yelled back.

"The only thing I was trying to destroy, Matt, was myself! Dad was long gone before that happened. I tried to explain that to you but you won't listen to me at all, you treat me as if I still am an addict when I'm not. But I'm not wasting my breath on the truth when you don't give a shit to hear it!" Jess said as she stormed to her room and slammed the door. She curled up on her bed and pulled her knees to her chest as she began to sob. She could hear her brothers arguing in the kitchen still before a door slammed and all was quiet.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Thank you to those who faved, followed and reviewed! :D**

It was dark when Jess opened her eyes again. She looked over to the clock on her bedside table as 12:04 blinked on the screen in bright green numbers making her squint her eyes at the sudden brightness. Hr eyes felt dry and sore from earlier, that was the first time in years she'd ever cried so hard. She came so close to finally telling Matt the reason she'd done it and the relief washed over her for a brief second before she had to bottle it all up again and feel it eat her up from the inside. She stood from the bed and opened her bedroom door, her brothers house dead silent that made chills run deep in her bones.

"Jeff?" She called out and awaited a response. He was usually up till 3 in the morning doing stuff and when he didn't reply back Jess went cold at the feeling of being alone. She went into the kitchen and grabbed her car keys off the kitchen counter and headed out to the car. She was going back to the one place this had all began, the one place she considered a home away from home but now felt nothing for it, the bar where she'd almost lost her life. As she pulled into the parking lot of the brightly lit tavern she killed the engine and sat in her car looking up at it. _Turn around and go home _she kept telling herself but soon her hand found the door handle and she walked inside, greeted by the familiar smell of smoke, alcohol and sweat. Nothing had changed in the two years she'd been here. Her eyes scanned around the bar before landing in shocked confusion on Dean. He was busy being entertained by 2 scantily dressed girls as shot glasses lined the bar in front of him. Before he could notice her she went to a booth neat the back of the bar and slipped inside.

"Haven't seen you in a while, stranger." She looked up to find Chauncey smiling fondly down at her. She was the owners wife and worked here as a waitress most nights. She was a stick thin, older woman with ginger hair and brown eyes that crinkled every time she smiled.

"Hey Chance." Jess said as she weakly returned her smile when she slid into the booth opposite her.

"How the hell have you been? I've been asking your brother Matt every time he's in how you are but he never answers." She said and Jess looked at her stunned.

"Matt comes in here?" She asked and Chauncey nodded at her as she began to scowl. She pulled out a cigarette and before lighting it up. She'd been claiming she was going to quit fr 3 years now but not once has she ever put a cigarette down.

"He comes in here to talk to Gerry." She said leaning over the table close to Jess. "Now I don't know why but I have a feeling it's concerning you little Missy. I've told Kent numerous times to ban that bastard from coming here ever since what happened to you, but he always argues claiming he brings in good business." She said looking dead into Jess eyes. Gerry brought in two kinds of business. The one's that Kent and Chauncey benefit from, and the ones that he benefit from. Jess had been both kinds.

"Anyway, tell me how you've been? I've been awful worried about you." She said in her think Carolina drawl.

"I've been doing better. Staying away from all this." Jess motioned as she looked around the room.

"Then what the hell brought you back?" She questioned in a demanding voice. Jess folder her arms in front of her on the table as she leaned forward.

"Matt and I ain't getting along like we used to. He's got it stuck in his head that I'm still addicted to drugs and stuff that all we ever do is argue anymore." Jess said and Chauncey shook her head. The bell to the door rang as Chauncey glanced over, her eyes going wide as she quickly put out her half done cigarette on the table.

"Jess, honey, you gotta get out of here." She said in a worried voice and Jess looked over to see that Gerry had just walked in with his crew. Her blood went cold as she sunk as far into the booth as she could so he wouldn't see her. She knew the rumors, heard them all herself, Gerry wanted the money she owed him and if he ever saw her she was going to get beat until he got it. When she seen that they all had their backs turned she quickly and quietly began to make her way to the door.

"Hey Jess, what are you doing here?" She stopped dead at the sound of Dean's voice before turning with fear in her eyes. Gerry was already starring at her with a smile and her heart dropped. Dean noticed the look on her face and looked towards the unknown man who was already advancing on her. Jess bolted out the door with the 3 guys hot on her heels. She felt someone grab her by her hair and yank her hard causing her to fall to the ground where someone booted her in the stomach.

"Where's my money?" Gerry demanded starring down at her.

"Gerry I don't have it right now but I can get it." She said as she pushed herself onto her hands and knees. He grabbed her roughly by the back of her shirt and pulled her up, pushing her hard against the car behind her and giving her a good punch to the cheek.

"You're in debt to me so much that I could kill you Jess." He said with a smile as he pushed the hair out of her face. She was shaking as tears formed in her eyes. She could feel blood slowly ooze from her nose and stop at her upper lip before dripping onto her shirt.

"Jess? Everything okay?" Dean said as he exited out to the parking lot and noticed the 3 guys having her pinned down.

"Go back inside and mind your own business, asshole." Gerry said and something inside Dean snapped. He rushed the three of them, his fists itching for a good fight in his tipsy state. He went for the closest one and decked him hard, watching him drop like a sack of potatoes. The next guy came at him and managed to punch Dean in the ribs. While Gerry was distracted by the fighting going on behind him Jess kneed him in the balls before running to her car. She thought about getting in a driving away but then looked back at Dean who was out numbered. He was kind enough to come out and see if she was okay and even protected her.

"Dean come on!" She yelled and he looked back at her before down at the guy he had by the collar. He let him go and watched him drop to the ground before jogging over to the passenger side of Jess car.

"I'll get you yet you fucking bitch, next time your dead!" Gerry yelled before Jess got in the car and sped away. She grabbed an old napkin from her cup holder and wiped the blood from her nose and upper lip.

"What the hell was that about?" Dean asked as he looked over at a shaken Jess.

"A really long story." She told him in a shaky voice. Her foot was pressed down on the gas pedal making them go well over the speed limit and Dean tensed in his seat.

"Jesus Jess slow down!" He yelled at her as she began to cry. "Pull over." He told her and she did just that. Gravel dust flew up all around the car as she came to a stop and hunched over the wheel sobbing.

"Can you at least explain to me what's going on, I think I deserve at least that after what I did for you back that." Dean said in a much harsher voice. When Jess looked up at him he felt a pain in his chest. She looked absolutely broken.

"Fine you want an explanation. Here!" She said as she pulled up her sleeves in a fit of rage. He noticed tiny scars scatter up her forearms but he still didn't understand.

"What the hell are those?" He asked and she let out a huff.

"They're _needle _marks. I used to be addicted to Heroine okay. Gerry was my drug dealer and I'm in debt to him over a thousand dollars." She said as she looked at him briefly before putting her head down and opening the car door. Dean was absolutely shocked at her revelation but it still didn't stop this feeling in his chest he had towards her. Jess slid down the side of the car door and sobbed into her knees. Dean opened the passenger side and quickly went around to her.

"Jess it's okay." He said as he gently took her by the arms.

"No, everything's no okay. I hate my life!" She yelled when he finally got her to her feet. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.

"Shhh, Jess don't cry." Dean said as she wrapped her arms around his torso and cried into his chest. He kept pulling his arms tighter and tighter around him trying to shield her from everything and make the pain stop.

"Thank you Dean." She finally said after a few moments and began to pull away. Dean didn't let go completely and held her at arms length. He could see all the pain in her eyes that she kept bottled up inside and he wanted to know every bit of it. This was a whole new Jess he was starring at and it was painful. He slowly leaned his face down to her and lightly touched their lips together. Jess wanted to pull away but she didn't. It had been so long since anyone had shown her this kind of affection. Soon her lips parted and Dean was quick to deepen the kiss, his tongue tasting bitter from the alcohol he'd consumed and Jess immediately recognized the taste of vodka, her own choice of poison when she drank at the bar. When Dean's hand began to trail up her shirt Jess broke away from him and took a step to the side. He was under the influence after all and would convert back to the same old Dean in the morning, perhaps worse if he remembered.

"What's wrong?" He asked her as he stepped closer to her only for her to step away again.

"We should go Dean." She said as she walked around him and got back into the car. He threw his arms up at his side before getting back into her car.

"Drop me off close to the bar, I need to get my car." He said and Jess stiffened before pulling a U-turn. She went as close as she could without breaking her comfort zone as Dean got out of the car without saying goodbye. She quickly sped home and crawled into her bed, covering herself with her blanket as if it could protect her. Dean arrived at his motel and quickly stripped down to his boxers as he laid in bed looking up at the ceiling. He wasn't sure if he was developing feelings for Jess or if he just felt bad for her. He did know that he wanted to protect her, know her and fix her. Jess was a mystery that Dean wanted to solve.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N thank you for those that reviewed and Followed :)**

When Jess woke up again Jeff still wasn't home and she was starting to get worried until she'd found a note taped to her door.

_Sorry about last night. I came into your room to see if you were alright but you had already passed out on your bed. Anyway I'm going to Beth's house, her and I are kind of seeing each other so I don't want you to worry, I was going to tell you about her before Matt blew up. Stay say and I love you, Jeff_

She tore it off and crumpled it up on her way to the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee. She was in nothing but a long shirt and her underwear, having changed sometime last night, as she walked into the living room with her coffee. Under that shirt though was a giant bruise on her ribs in the shape of the front of someones shoe. Loud knocking sounded from her front door and her heart jumped up into her throat. Was it Gerry? She ducked low and peeked out the curtain of the living room window only to see Dean standing on the front steps looking impatient. _How does he know where I live? _She thought, having no recollection of telling him. She quickly stood and answered the door, Sticking only her head out as she hid her lower half behind the door.

"The gyms closed today, it's Sunday." She said thinking he was going to scold her for not being there.

"I know, I just came by to see how you were. Can I come in?" He asked looking at her a little concerned. She didn't know why but she opened the door for him slowly and watched as he came inside.

"Did you want...coffee or something?" She offered him as she did her best to pull the shirt lower and cover herself. Dean noticed and turned away.

"How about breakfast?" Dean asked as she began to walk to her room and she stopped to look back at him.

"You want me to make breakfast?" She questioned and his gaze returned to her standing in the doorway. Her cheek was bruised and under her eye was a deep shade of purple.

"Or we could go and get some." He suggested as she continued walking. Dean watched as she went, his eyes trailing down her body and watching her ass jiggle slightly as she walked and letting out a small breath of air. She caught a glimpse of her face for the first time as she walked past a hallway mirror and stopped dead as she noticed the bruising.

"I'll make breakfast." She called back as she went in her room and threw on some loose pants. She walked back out into the kitchen and started grabbing pans. "What did you want?" She asked as Dean joined her and sat on one of the stools at the island counter.

"I can make basically anything, I used to work as a chef in a waffle house." She said getting an odd look from Dean.

"Well how about some hash browns and an omelet?" he said and Jess went to work. Dean watched her again, he didn't know why but he was slightly turned on by the way she moved and carried herself. Right here in this kitchen, she was the boss and her posture showed it.

"About last night.."Dean began and watched her stiffen. She was hoping he'd forgotten but Dean had a very good memory.

"I don't want to talk about it." Jess said sharply as she cracked an egg into a bowl and began to add things for his omelet.

"You can't avoid it Jess, we kissed and it was a hell of a good one, the kind that usually involves feelings." Dean said and it caught her off guard. He came by to talk to her about a kiss?

"Dean the only thing you were feeling was the alcohol in your blood system." She said as she dumped the egg mixture into a pan and listened to it sizzle for a moment.

"I know what I felt Jess." Dean argued by she just wasn't in the mood to fight back. She was tired, sore and done with feeling alone. She finished cooking him breakfast and pushed the plate in front of him before hoping up on the counter and looking at him with her arms crossed.

"Aren't you gonna eat?" He asked as he began to dig in.

"I don't eat in the morning, I only drink coffee." She replied. Dean went about eating until everything was gone and he had to admit that she was a decent cook. He glanced out her kitchen window and seen a homemade wrestling ring in the back and he got an idea.

"Still want me to teach you some moves?" He asked her and her eyes followed his outside.

"That thing hasn't been used in months so it'll probably break." She said looking at the contraption her brothers had built the year before in order to teach her.

"At least it'll make it exciting." Dean said with a smile as he stood up and made his way out back. Jess rolled her eyes as she hoped off the counter and changed before meeting him out in the ring. She stepped up onto it cautiously as the wood creaked under hers and Deans weight.

"Dean this thing is going to collapse." She said as her eyes mapped out every step she took. Dean placed his finger under her chin and made her look up at him.

"Then don't think about. Ready?" he asked her and she nodded with a gulp as he began. With every suplex and drop kick they made the ring shook under them making Dean laugh and causing Jess to smile at him.

"Alright now climb up to the top rope and show me your best frog splash." Dean said as he laid down in the center of the ring. Jess climbed up the post shakily as it wobbled underneath. As she pushed off into the air it snapped off and flew out into the backyard. Dean opened his arms to catch Jess as she landed and when she did, the part of the ring floor they were both on caved in and sent them both falling into the enclosed bottom beneath it. Dean still had his arms around her and cushioned her fall as her body and face pressed into his chest when they collided with the hard ground. She pushed herself up with her arms on either side of his torso and looked down at him.

"Told you it'd break." she said and Dean just started laughing, the kind of laugh someone made when they were having fun and Jess couldn't help but join in.

"That was awesome." Dean said after he'd calmed himself down and looked up at Jess who was still on top of him laughing herself.

"Ah spiders!" She said as cob webs lined the walls and boards above her. She did her best to get out of Deans grasp and back through the hole but he held onto her tight.

"Don't tell me you're scared of spiders." He said with a chuckle and from the horrified look in her eyes it was obvious she was. So he rolled with her so she was underneath him, his arms holding him above her as she looked up at him confused.

"Dean what are you doing?" She asked him in a low voice. He responded by putting his lips on hers. She wrapped her arms and legs around him this time as he lowered himself to his elbows so that his body was laying on hers lightly as he played with the ends of her hair. This confirmed what Dean suspected, that she did have feelings for him, but as his hand began to trail up her shirt again she flinched and pushed him away.

"Ow." She said as she grabbed her side and tried to wiggle free of him.

"Sorry." He said after getting a little too carried away as he pushed himself off her, afraid his body weight was too much for her to handle. She didn't look mad, just uncertain and pained. "I didn't hurt you did I?" He asked her worried but she just shook her head and lifted her shirt to show another bruise that marked her tender skin. "When did that happen?" he questioned as his fingers lightly grazed it.

"Right before you came out. They had me down and someone kicked me." She told him and he felt his blood boil.

"Jess I swear on my life they won't ever hurt you again. Nobody will." He said looking into her eyes. He felt a connection to her that he never felt with any of his previous lovers, especially considering most of them were only for one night. But Jess was uncertain what she felt for him. She wanted to let him him but she also wanted to push him away, far away. She was always cautious of who she let in because in the end they've either hurt her or left. And she wasn't sure if Dean could handle the complete mess her life is and was.

"Jess are you okay!?" Jeff's voice called and she heard his footsteps heavy on the boards as he jumped up and made his way over to the hole. Dean quickly rolled off her as he brother appeared and looked down at her. "Give me your hand." He said as he held it down for her to grab. It wasn't that deep at all and she could have gotten out easily but Jeff always exaggerated things. She took his hand and he pulled her out, then he offered it to Dean who politely declined as he climbed out himself. Jeff looked between the both of them before his eyes stopped at Jess, his hands immediately cupping her face as he examined it.

"What the hell happened?" He asked.

"We we're just practicing when the thing caved in on us." She said but Jeff shook his head at her.

"I seen that, I'm talking about your face." He said and she winced when he touched it gently with his thumb. Jess had never been a good liar, especially to Jeff, so bit by bit the truth came out.

"Just promise me you won't ever go there again." He said and she nodded her head before he turned to dean and held out his hand, "Thank you so much for protecting her." He said and they shook hands.

"No problem, so are you Jess' boyfriend?" Dean questioned and Jess busted out laughing.

"Hell no, she's my sister." Jeff said in amusement as Deans face flushed with embarrassment. "So did you learn anything before you fell in the hole?" Jeff asked her with a grin as they all made their way back inside.

"A few things but not much. I think we got about 13 minutes on it before it caved." She said as she went to the fridge and poured them all a glass of water. The front door slamming made her jump as all three heads turned to see Matt marching angry into the kitchen.

"You went to the tavern last night!?" He demanded as he threw his fist down on the counter in front of Jess.

"It's not what you're thinking." Jess said defending herself.

"Then what business could you possibly have there?" He asked her getting dangerously close to her.

"She was there with me." Dean piped up causing Matt to glare over at him.

"And who the hell are you?" He asked turning his anger on Dean who seemed so cool and calm despite the rage brewing inside him.

"I'm Dean, her mentor. I took her out last night." He said and Matt let out a huff.

"Chances are you don't know a damn thing about my sister or the history she has with that place and the people in it." He said in a tone that Dean didn't like.

"You're sister is a big girl and doesn't need you to hold her hand." Dean said and Matt lurched towards him and grabbed him by the collar. Jess quickly grabbed Matt by the shoulders and started to pull when when used his arm to push her away hard enough that she flew back and hit the counter on her bruised ribs and she collapsed from the pain.

"Jess!" Jeff and Dean cried as Dean pushed Matt away from him. Jeff was leaning down to aid his sister as Dean placed himself between Matt and the two of them.

"Why don't you explain yourself and why you go there to talk to Gerry?" Jess said and anger sparked on Jeff's face. How could Matt go and talk to the one person who wanted their sister dead?

"I don't have to explain a goddamn thing to you!" He shouted at her as she grabbed the counter to help her stand.

"Then I don't have to explain a thing to you!" She retorted making his temper flare even more.

"Get the hell out of my house Matt and don't even think of coming back if you're gonna continue to act this this towards anyone who steps foot in this house. He saved our sister from that man killing her, something you knew, and yet you go and you talk to him? Unforgivable!" Jeff said as he went toe to toe with his older brother. Dean stood in front of Jess in a protective stance and was ready to get her the hell out of there if anything happened. After moments of tension between them all Matt turned on his heels and left, knocking over and breaking anything he could get his hands on on his way out the door. Jess put her head in her hands as she made her way to her room again. This was what she didn't want Dean to ever see, the fact that her family was torn apart and her brother was out to get her with a vengeance.

"Jess-" Dean called to her but she didn't stop and closed her door. Jeff looked at him as he calmed and picked up the stool Matt knocked over before sitting in it.

"Really sorry about that." Jeff said in an apology.

"Does this happen a lot?" Dean asked and Jeff nodded his head, looking just as tired and torn up as his sister did. He didn't understand how they could put up with that, had Dean been in Jeff's shoes he would have decked him.

"I guess Jess hasn't told you anything?" Jeff asked and his eyes said he was hoping that she hadn't.

"Last night she showed me her arms and told me about Gerry and her past heroine addiction but that was it." He said and Jeff nodded.

"Unfortunately I wish it was just that but there is so much more to the story that only Jess knows and she's kept tight lipped for the past 2 years." Jeff said and it only made Dean more eager to get her to open up to him.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N Thank you for the favs, reviews and follows, it makes me want to write and continue the story! :)**

When Dean walked out of the Hardy house he stopped dead as he looked at his car. There was a giant hole through his windshield and his front tires and been slashed.

"Damn it!" He yelled in frustration as he hit the railing hard. He went over and assessed the damage the oldest Hardy had caused and swore if he saw him ever again he would deck him.

"Jesus, what the hell did Matt do?" Jeff asked shocked as he joined Dean's side. There was a giant rock from his from garden sitting in the drivers seat as long with shards of glass.

"If I ever see your brother, he's getting a beating." Dean said enraged as he pulled out his cell phone. Jeff completely understood because now Matt was taking things way too far. "Yeah I need a tow to the nearest Mechanic because someone slashed my tires." Dean said into the phone to the tow company. He talked for a few more minutes before hanging up. Boy did he have a story for Seth and Roman.

"Listen man, I'll pay for the damage-" Jeff began but Dean cut him off.

"It's not your fault it's that damn psycho brother of yours. What's his deal with Jess anyway?" Dean asked curious about the history that lead them to this mutual hatred.

"Well as you know Jess got into trouble with drugs when she was about 17 and struggled with it up until our father died. Then she got way worse, shootin up everyday. So me and Matt decided it was time for an intervention so we go to the tavern she usually goes to get her drugs but we don't see her. We asked everyone at the bar if they had and they all said she was in the bathroom, low and behold there she was passed out from an overdose that almost took her life." Jeff said sadly and Dean felt his hear sink. Jess had almost died. "After that Matt just went crazy and made her move in with him so he could monitor her. He literally kept her locked up in his house for 5 months until I got her the hell out of there. Matt didn't like it but there wasn't much he could do at that point. Then I built her that dandy little ring in the back and when Matt seemed like he was finally coming around and back to his senses the both of us began to teach her how to wrestle. Recently though he seems to be getting worse." Jeff finished off.

"Your brother is a complete control freak, that's what his problem is. You and Jess need to get the hell away from him." Dean said and Jeff nodded.

"Why do you think I tried so hard to get her into a wrestling business? I'm trying to get it so that she can enjoy her life instead of living in fear of her own brother." Jeff said and Dean's head became a whirl of thoughts.

"Jeff what if I took her with me?" He said bluntly and Jeff looked stunned.

"Took her where? Right now?" He questioned as he stared at Dean as if that was the stupidest thing he's ever been asked.

"Yes now and to wherever RAW is stationed right now. I could train her and she'd be safe, away from Matt who is clearly trying to ruin her life and making it a living hell for her." He said as he crossed his arms. Jeff ran his fingers through his hair and let out a breath of air through pursed lips as he thought about it. He'd just met Dean today and it would be crazy to trust this man with his sister but he saw first hand the way he was towards her, affectionate and protective, something Jess needed in her life.

"Do you promise you'll look out for her and make sure she's okay?" He asked and Dean was quick to nod his head.

"Of course, and if she doesn't want to come then I won't force her. Or if she does come and wants to go home I'll bring her straight back here, I won't like it, but I'll do it." He said as he looked Jeff in the eye. Jeff couldn't argue with him. Dean seemed like he was Jess' only way out of this town at this point, without him training her she won't be able to make it into the WWE and then she'd be stuck here for good.

"Alright, I'll go and tell her." Jeff said as he went back into the house and knocked on her bedroom door. "Jess I need to talk to you." He said as he opened her door and found her sitting on her bed with her knees to her chest.

"Did he leave yet?" She asked without looking up at him referring to Dean.

"He can't leave, Matt slashed his tires and broke his windshield so he had to call a tow truck." Her face shot up and she looked at him with disbelief.

"Are you serious?" She asked and Jeff just nodded making her shake her head.

"Jess do you like him?" Jeff asked as he leaned on her door frame. She seemed happier when he was around and braver after what she did in the kitchen with Matt.

"I don't know...why?" She questioned him.

"I just think that you and him should travel with the company. He could train you along the way and it'll be good for you to get out and see what it's all about with the traveling and such." He said and Jess got up form her bed to stand in front of him.

"What if I don't wanna go anymore?" She challenged him with tears in her eyes.

"Then I'm making you go. You need to get out there and live Jess, you need to feel what it's like to be happy. I'm tired of watching you sit in the house day after day looking so depressed and having to worry about Matt barging into my house almost every day just to cause shit." He said and she nodded before backing away.

"Please just say you aren't doing this to get rid of me. I know I've been a burden but-" she began but Jeff quickly put his arms around her and hugged her close.

"Hell no I ain't trying to get rid of you, I'm trying to protect you and Dean is the best person I can think of right now. He's a good person Jess, I know he is deep down inside. He may look all rough and tough and mean but he's got a soft spot for you." Jeff said with a smile as he let her go and lightly tapped her arm with his fist. Jess smiled at the thought of Dean having soft spot.

"I'll try and be back to see you as much as I can." She said as turned and pulled two suitcases from under her bed and began to pack. Jeff left the room and let out a heavy sigh. The house would be lonely with out her. He went back out and told Dean that she was getting ready to go with him, leaving out the part that he practically made her.

"Take good care of her. I will hurt you if I find out other wise." Jeff said instinctively as him and Jess got up into the tow truck with her luggage. It took about an hour for them to repair the damage Matt had done to Dean's car but when they did Dean set off for his motel with Jess in the passenger seat.

"It's gonna be a long journey so I hope you're up for it." Dean said as he parked. Both of them walked into his room and Jess scrunched up her nose as the smell hit her.

"Did something die in here?" She asked him as she looked around his dirty room. He had dirty laundry every where and a few empty take out boxes.

"Yeah, my clothes." Dean said with a chuckle as he picked up a pair of his dirty shorts and tossed them at her. She swatted them out of the air before they could hit her and smiled at him.

"You do know there is a laundromat in town." She told him as he began to stuff them all in a duffel bag and collect a few other things from around the room and bathroom.

"Yeah but I couldn't be bothered, you ready?" He said as he slung the bag over his shoulder before making his way out the door and throwing his bag into the trunk with hers. Jess buckled up her seat belt and prepared herself for the long drive ahead of her, for now it was only her, Dean and the open road.

"So did Jeff put you up to this?" She asked him when he got back into the car.

"Nope it was all my idea." He said and she was a little surprised. When things between them got silent she began to play with his radio until something good came on.

"When we get where were going I got some friends I'd like you to meet. And don't worry they're nice when you first met them unlike me you're probably hoping." He told her with a smile and a wink making her blush.

"Well you weren't exactly friendly. And then you just got plain rude. What made you change?" She asked as she looked over at him. His face turned serious but his eyes never left the road.

"I don't know exactly what but you did have a huge part in it." He said and gave her a quick glance as he cracked a smile at her. The sky was growing dark fast and dean knew they still had a long way to go so he found the nearest motel and stopped there for the night.

"Do you have a room for 2? Preferably separate beds." He said taking into consideration that Jess might want her own instead of sleeping with him. But lady luck seemed the be in his favour that night.

"We don't have any separate beds, only queen size." The man at the desk said and Dean booked them one.

"I'll take the couch." Jess said as she dropped one of her suitcases on the floor and walked over to the sofa.

"Don't be ridiculous. The beds big enough." Dean said and that got him a smirk from Jess.

"Quit making it obvious that you want me to sleep with you." She said as she stood up.

"Wasn't trying to hide it." He said as he walked over to her. He found it hard resisting to keep his hands and lips off her but he managed. He'd known the girl for a little over a week now and he was already smitten with her.

"I'm gonna change, be out in a minute." She said in a breathy whisper that made his heart melt. He wondered what she sounded like when she moaned. Jess quickly walked around hm and unzipped her suitcase, pulling out her pajama shirt and heading into the bathroom. When she came back out she didn't have pants on and Dean looked at her while shaking his head.

"You're a horrible cock tease you know." He said making her laugh. She pulled the blankets back on the bed and just as she was crawling in Dean gave her a light smack on the ass that made her jaw drop.

"Watch it mister I wouldn't want to hurt you." She said as she pointed her finger at him with a sly smile.

"Don't tell me you're going to bed this early." He said as he looked at the clock that read 10:24 pm. Jess let out a yawn as her tired eyes drooped. Despite the bruise on her face, Dean thought she couldn't look anymore beautiful.

"It's been a long day and when you put up with my brother as much as I do it takes a lot of you." She said as she curled up on her side facing the bathroom and closed her eyes. Dean began to pull his shirt off over his head and at the sound of the fabric Jess opened one of her eyes to watch him. When he had it over his head he looked at her and she immediately shut it but couldn't help the smile that formed om her face.

"I seen you looking." He said and she full out started to laugh. Dean climbed in the bed beside her and slide over as close as he could to her, putting his hand under the blanket and tickling her unbruised side. Jess broke out in fits of laughter as she tried to get away from his hands but Dean held tight, loving the sound of her laugh. She rolled onto her back and tried to tickle him back but he grabbed both of her tiny wrists in his giant hand and held them above her head. As she wiggled she felt the edge of the bed come closer and closer until she was almost falling but Dean was quick to grab her and pulled her into his chest.

"You know I appreciate everything you're doing for me, even though I know it wasn't your choice. I'm glad it was you." She said and Dean smiled down at her before kissing her forehead.

"You must be really tired, go to sleep." He said with a chuckle as he let go of her and turned onto his side. The absence of his arms around her made her feel vulnerable but she pushed it away as she turned on her side and fell asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N Thank you so, so much for the follows and reviews! :) I hope I don't disappoint with this chapter because it kind of just drags on but contains important info. **

Jess was a complete blanket hog. Dean couldn't keep count of how many times he had to wrestle it from underneath her as she wrapped it around her body in her sleep. And Dean was a bed hog. Jess didn't mean it just by his size, but the fact that his arms and legs were always thrown across her or he was rolling on top of her or pushing her so she almost face planted off the bed a few times.

"Dean." Jess said in a sleepy voice and hopped he was awake, she had her back to him so she couldn't tell. He let out a soft hmm as he turned his head to look at her as he laid on his back. "What time is it?" She asked him and he grabbed his phone off the side table and checked the screen.

"Almost 7, why?" He asked her and she turned to face him, shifting over and placing her head on his chest. Thunder rumbled loudly and the hotel shook making Jess tense up and grip Dean tighter.

"Are you afraid of storms too?" He asked looking down at her with a small smile as he pushed some hair out of her face. He held her close as her breath danced across his pecks and sent chills down his spine.

"No I just wasn't expecting that." She said as lightening flashed and lit up the room.

"Looks like a storms heading in. Did you wanna stay here till it passed or chance the drive?" Dean said as he noticed the darkness of the clouds that continued to get deeper in colour and move in faster.

"Let's just stay here, just like this." Jess said as she closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep. Deans chest vibrated against her cheek as he chuckled. Maybe it was time for her to move on and let someone in, she was undeniably attracted to Dean and she felt that with all the kissing they did that he may just like her back.

"Jess, what was it like living with Matt?" Dean asked and her eyes slowly opened to look at him as she sat up in bed.

"Jeff told you about that?" She asked and Dean saw her throat move as she swallowed.

"Yeah he did. Told me a little bit about you but I want to know all about you and only you can tell me." He said as he sat up and reached to put a strand of hair behind her ear but she flinched away from him.

"Dean, talking about things just isn't something I do. I don't even open up to Jeff and he's my brother, I trust him with my life and I don't even talk to him about those things." She said as a hollow feeling took over her at the memory. God knows she wanted too tell him, she wanted to so bad, but the words always got stuck in her throat and slowly began to suffocate her when she tried to get them out. She let out a calming breath and decided she would give it a try again. "What all did Jeff say?" She asked him.

"Just the basics, when you started drugs, almost _died,_ and then went to live with Matt for a bit before Jeff rescued you and brought you up until this moment." He told her.

"Well...living with Matt was hard. You seen how he was at Jeff's house so you could just imagine how much worse he'd been in his own. He put me in the spare room without me knowing he'd switched the door handle around so it locked from the hallway. When I realized I couldn't get out I freaked on him and he told me it was for my own good." She said and let out a labored breath as Dean listened intently with wide eyes. "I...I went through with drawls, laying on the floor crying in pain with the shakes and sickness like you wouldn't believe and...and." She was starting to choke up and Dean reached out to her, feeling her pain as he touched her face. "He left me in there alone to suffer. He would lock me in there for days at a time because he was ashamed of me, told me I deserved every bit of what was happening to me and slowly I started to believe him. I live with the shame that he's made me feel." She finished off as tears slowly fell down her cheeks before hitting Dean's fingers. He pulled her into his lap, his heart going out to her because nobody deserved to be treated that way, especially by their own family.

"You didn't deserve it Jess, you shouldn't be ashamed because everyone fucks up every now and again. At least you got better and you're still doing better." He said as he stroked her hair. She pulled back and looked up at him, wanting to pour her heart out to him and tell him every single dark secret she had. The storm was getting stronger outside, thunder shaking the motel every 5 minutes and Dean suspected a Tornado warning would be in effect.

"Sometimes I still get the cravings for heroine and it just comes in waves so bad that I nearly cave. Does that make me a bad person?" She asked him in a low voice. She felt the weight in her chest getting lighter with every word that came out.

"Not at all. You're strong Jess, and I'm right here if you ever need me to be strong for you." He said as he closed his eyes and felt her sink into him.

"I never had friends growing up. I was always alone because I used to over weight and everyone made fun of me. I never let it bother me as a kid but as high school hit I got really depressed and that was how it all started. By the end of tenth grade I'd already done at least 3 needles and over the period of the summer I did 5. I just kept getting skinnier and skinnier and I loved it, so I kept going. Finally people noticed me and I managed to find a crowd of people who were into the same thing and we bonded over drugs. Heroine wasn't the only drug I did in my teen years, but it was the only drug I stuck with up until two years ago." She said and deans head began to spin as he processed everything.

"Was there ever a time when you were happy?" Dean asked hoping to hear something that didn't make him want to cry.

"Of course I was. I was happy as a kid, even though I didn't have friends I still had my family. I was happy for a bit when I found people like me in high school and when Jeff took me away from Matt." She said as she pulled away and looked up at him. "And I know it doesn't seem like it right now but I'm happy whenever I'm with you." She told him and that brought a smile to his face.

"Well where we're headed you're going to meet a lot of people like you and I know they're gonna love you. You'll make friends in no time." He said and she smiled as she leaned up and pecked him on the lips. She'd never been more glad to meet anyone in her life as much as she was that she'd met Dean Ambrose. Jeff gave her an angel to save her from her own self destruction.

"Looks like the storms clearing, you wanna head out?" Dean said as the rain dulled to a gentle thrum against the window and the thunder passed over.

"Sure let's get out of here." She said as they both stood and changed in the same room with their backs to each other.

"Jess is there anything you've ever wanted to do? Things that you weren't allowed to?" Dean asked as they got into the car.

"Of course there is. I was a rebel child after all and Matt either made me give up things or forbid me to do things." She told him.

"Well what kind of things didn't he want you to do?" Dean asked curious.

"No tattoo's and no piercings because I was a drug addict and would destroy my body with hateful things and pierce places that shouldn't be pierced." She told him and a slight smirk came to Dean's lips as he thought about where Matt was talking about with piercings.

"What did you want to get?" He asked her trying to fill the silence.

"I wanted to get my nose and belly button pierced but when it comes to tattoos I have way to many ideas. Mainly gang symbols and satanic worship." She said with a smile causing him to laugh.

"Smart ass." He retorted. "How about music, what are you into?"

"I'm into all kinds of music but mostly rock and roll." She said as Dean played with his stereo until he found a station that played rock music.

"You actually listen to this?" He asked in disbelief. He was a rock fan himself but he had her pegged as a country girl.

"Yeah believe it or not. And I already know what your thinking, country girl from North Carolina listening to rock. We do get more then one station." She told him as she watched the scenery fly by them, mostly just open fields and the occasional barn and farm animals. "How much longer till we get there?" She asked him already getting sick of being in the car. She wanted to roam now that she was finally free from the town and person that held her captive most of her life.

"Just a few more hours, we should be there before dark. I hope." Dean said as he leaned his elbow on the little ledge by the window.

"So how about you? Any tragic childhood memories you'd like to share?" Jess said hoping that Dean would do her the same respect and open up a bit about himself. She was curious about him after all.

"Nothing tragic, just sad. Didn't get along with my parents when I was a teen and left to pursue a career in wrestling. We haven't talked in years and I do miss them but there's just to much history there for things to ever be the way they were." He said and she could see the sadness and longing in his eyes.

"I think you should call them. It's been years you said so maybe things have changed." Jess said trying to give him some friendly advice but her just shook his head.

"Nah, can't be bothered." He said and things feel silent between them as the drive dragged on.


	8. Chapter 8

Dean let out a sigh of relief as they finally made it to their destination. Jess had fallen asleep a little over an hour ago and he took the chance to call Roman to get directions to where they were staying.

"Hey we're here." He said as he shook her knee and watched her eyes open slowly as she looked around to the bright lights of the big city.

"Where are we?" She asked as she stretched.

"Atlanta." He said as they both got out of his car and grabbed their things before heading into the lobby.

"Dean, long time no see brother." Seth said with a smile as he made his way through the crowd. Dean dropped his bag and hugged his friend. "What happened with Carolina? Thought you were suppose to be there with a trainee?" He asked as Jess came up from behind Dean and Seth's eyes looked her over.

"I decided to bring her with me." Dean said as he looked over at Jess." This is Seth Rollins, one of my very good friends and part of my team." He said introducing her. She held out her hand meekly and shook Seth's hand.

"You didn't tell me that you were training a Diva. Me and Roman were expecting another guy to join the roster." Seth said as they all made their way to the front desk.

"Where is Roman?" Dean said as he turned and scanned the crowded lobby.

"He's over with Layla waiting for you." Seth said and Dean froze. He'd completely forgotten about her. Him and Layla had kind of been sleeping together for a few weeks and she was convinced that there was something more between them than there actually was. How the hell was he going to get out of this without Jess finding out?

"So are we rooming together again or getting separate rooms?" Jess asked and Seth gave him a shocked look.

"Uh..separate for now." He said and Jess only smiled up at him as he booked their rooms. She didn't think anything of it because he probably roomed with his friends and she was okay with being alone.

"Why don't you head up and I'll come check on you in a bit." Dean told her as he handed her the room key.

"Sure." She said taking it and her bags before heading to the elevator. She pushed the button and waited.

"Dude what the fuck?" Seth asked as he watched her walk away. Seth new that Dean only roomed with women for one reason only. "I thought you and Layla were together and now you're hitting that? Not that I blame you, she's hot." Seth continued and Dean pinched the bridge of his nose.

"For one, Layla and I aren't together and you of all people should know that, and two it's a long and complicated story of what's going on between me and Jess. No I'm not sleeping with her but I'll explain later." He said as they made their way over to Roman. Layla was beaming at him before she made her way over and wrapped her arms around his neck and planting a kiss on him. Jess felt her mouth fall slightly ajar as she watched what was happening only a few feet away from her. Clearly Dean wasn't paying attention to whether or not she'd actually gotten in the elevator before he placed a hand on her waist and kissed her back. Jess felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach as the elevator opened and she quickly ducked inside. When Dean heard the ding of the elevator his blood went cold and he turned to see if Jess was still standing there but relaxed when he didn't see her.

"So what happened to your months vacation? Did your trainee decide he didn't want to do this anymore?" Roman asked as Layla stood beside Dean with her arm draped around his waist and he wanted to push her away.

"Nope she's here, just gone up to her room." Dean said and Layla looked up at him.

"A new diva? I'd love to meet her!" She said with her thick English accent. It had been one of the things that had drawn Dean to her, along with her figure but that was it. He thought he'd had feelings her in the beginning stages of them seeing each other but it soon died out when he realized how clingy she was.

"Yeah, that'd be great, she could use a friend." Dean said as he forced a smile. This is not going to end well at all he thought to himself. "Anyway I'm gonna go up to my room and get settled in. I'll see you guys later." He said as he detached himself from Layla but she just followed him.

"Want some company?" She asked him in a seductive voice as he waited for the elevator but he let out a sigh.

"Not tonight, I'm tired from all that driving and just wanna get some sleep. Maybe some other time." He said as he shrugged her off and she frowned.

"Alright, sleep well." She said as she leaned up and kissed him hard on the mouth. The elevator couldn't come fast enough at this point. When he heard the ding as it opened he turned and walked backwards into it releasing himself from her grasp.

"Night Layla." He said as the doors closed and took him up to his floor. Jess had the room next to him and as he walked by he could faintly hear the sounds of crying coming from inside and it made him worried. He knocked on her door and twisted to door handle, thankful it was unlocked.

"Jess?" He called into her dark room as he stepped inside. As soon as she heard his voice she stopped crying and bottled it up. Dean wasn't at all who she thought he was and she was a fool to think that someone like him could ever love someone as fucked up as her. She heard his heavy footsteps slowly make there way towards her in the dark as she sat on her bed staring out the window at the full moon. The light from it illuminating her figure as Dean walked into the room.

Jess whats wrong?" He asked her as he made his way around the end of the bed and sat beside her. She quickly moved away from him to the other end of the bed.

"Go away Dean." She said in a shaky voice as more tears threatened to fall.

"No, not until you tell me what's wrong." He said as he moved towards her and tried to take her into his arms.

"Don't touch me!" She yelled at him as she pushed him away and stood up with her arms crossed. She couldn't get the image out of her head of him with Layla, the way that they were so familiar with each other that you could tell they were together intimately and how she so badly wanted it to be her.

"Jess what did I do?" He asked as he stood and got closer to her. A tear slipped down her cheek and he wanted badly to wipe it away but respected her wishes of him keeping his hands off her.

"You didn't tell me you were with someone." She said through clenched teeth as she turned to him. He froze as realization slowly dawned on him. She'd seen him with Layla even after he thought she hadn't.

"It's not what it looked like Jess-" He began but her eyes flashed with anger before that anger was consumed by hurt and sadness.

"I liked you Dean, and I thought you liked me. I trusted you enough to start to open up and now...now I just..."She was struggling to get the words out as they became a jumbled mess on the tip of her tongue and it made her frustrated. "Just get out. After we're done training I don't want anything more to do with you." She said angry and her words hit Dean right in the heart. Not sure what to say he turned on his heel and left, slamming her door on the way out and leaving her alone as the throbbing need for heroine sparked up inside her and tore her apart. She remember Dean saying that when she couldn't be strong he'd be strong for her and she needed that right now, but she wasn't about to go and tell him that. So she left her room, made her way down into the lobby and out into the busy night streets of Atlanta to lose herself and find what she was looking for. Dean sat on his own bed with his head in his hands. He shouldn't have left her alone like that, should have explained everything and told her that she was the one he wanted, not Layla, and he'd be willing to break it off with her if she only told him that she wanted him too.

"God I'm a fucking idiot." He said as he stood and walked back to her room. He knocked and waited but received no answer so he tried the door again and it was still unlocked. "Jess, I'm sorry." He called into the room as he began to turn the lights on but she wasn't there. Worried he went down to the lobby and began to look for her but still she wasn't there. Now in a full out panic he raced out to the parking lot and got in his car. He tore out of the parking lot and hit the gas as his eyes scanned down every street in hopes of finding her. His heart raced as every bad thing that could happen to her crossed his mind. He couldn't stand the thought of Jess being out here alone at the mercy of anyone that wanted to do her harm. As he turned a corner he finally saw the top of her head bobbing up and down in a crowd of people as she slowly scanned the windows of stores that lined the streets. Dean cut across the park as cars honked at him and jumped out of his car.

"Jess!" He called and she turned at the sound of her name as Dean pushed his way through the crowd. "What are you doing out here?" He asked as he made his way to her.

"I needed some air and space and time to think." She told him as her eyes went to the ground.

"Listen just let me explain. There is nothing between Layla and me. Just like you, I fucked up in the past and she's the result of that just like many other women." He told her and she felt her eyes go wide.

"I don't want to join those ranks Dean." She said sharply as she looked up at him.

"I know you don't, and I don't want you to either. I have feelings for you Jess, and it scares the hell out of me because this has never happened before." He said as he took her face in his hands. She didn't push him away, she stood there and listened. "I don't care about your past, that's not you anymore. What I care about is your present and your future and I really want to be apart of both." He said with as much feeling as he could muster. He had to make her believe that he was being honest.

"Prove it to me then. Break it off with her and just be with me." She pleaded with him and he placed his forehead to hers.

"Get out of the side walk!" Some yelled from behind them making them both pull apart.

"Shut up." Dean said back to the guy before turning back to Jess. She smiled up at him as they both began to chuckle. "Come on, let's get back to the hotel." Dean said as he placed his arm around her shoulders and walked her back to the car. If Dean could easily forgive and forget her past then she could so the same, only when he got rid of Layla of course.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N Thank you for the faves, reviews and follows! xoxo**

"Did you wanna go and eat or just go back to the hotel?" Dean asked Jess once they were in the car and he started driving again. Her stomach grumbled loud enough that Dean heard it and he grinned at her knowing now she couldn't say no. "So what'll it be?" He asked.

"Just a burger, maybe a shake." She said as he pulled into the drive thru of the nearest fast food burger joint and ordered their food. Jess couldn't believe her ears at the amount of food Dean was ordering. "Who the hell are you feeding? A small village?" She asked when they pulled up to the window.

"I'm getting something for Roman and Seth. I'm gonna head over to their room and see what went on while I was gone. You wanna come?" He asked as he accepted the brown bags of food and handed them over to Jess as he paid.

"Uh, sure. Will that chick be there?" Jess asked, not wanting to have to deal with watching her kiss up on Dean. She'd already decided to give him his space to work up into breaking it off with her, she wouldn't force him. Even if he didn't she'd still want to be his friend, even though the thought made her heart stop.

"Layla? I hope not. She's trying to get me in bed with her and I just..I can't anymore." He said looking over at Jess and making her heart skip a beat. When they got back to the hotel Jess followed him nervously into the elevator and up to the floor his buddies were staying on as they carried the bags of food.

"Don't be scared, they're good guys. A little rowdy and loud, but they're guys." Dean said with a smile as he took in her slowly paling face. Jess was never good at meeting new people and actually hitting it off. He knocked on their door and she was surprised that they were still up at this time of night when Seth opened the door in nothing but his boxers.

"Dude put some clothes on I brought Jess over." Dean said shaking his head with a chuckle as he pushed past him and into the room. Jess followed behind and felt herself blush as Seth smiled down at her before closing the door.

"Dean!" Roman said as he stood off the couch and bro hugged him. Jess just stood awkwardly with her hands full as the three guys sat and began to chat up a storm. Dean finally looked over at her after ten minutes and realized she was still just standing there.

"Guys this is Jess, Seth you already met her but we brought food." He said as he stood and went over to her, grabbing the bags and dishing out the food.

"You can come and sit, we don't bite." Roman said giving her a friendly smile and she went and sat between him and Dean. She had the straw to her milkshake squeezed between her lips as she began to suck. "So you're the girl Dean's been training. Hope he hasn't been to rough on you." Roman said with a wink and smirk that made her cheeks flush red at what he was implying and nearly choked as she swallowed, a little bit of it coming out of her mouth. The three guys began to laugh at her expense before Dean told them that nothing like that was happening between them.

"So what made you want to become a Diva?" Seth asked as he sat on the opposite side of the coffee table on the floor and stuck a bunch of fries in his mouth.

"My brothers. They were professional wrestlers with the WWE for a long time and then they started to train me." She said and this seemed to spark his interest.

"Who are they?" He asked with a full mouth.

"Matt and Jeff Hardy." She said and his eyes went the size of saucers.

"No way! I'm a big fan of them. They were so great." Seth began and his rave about them went on for about 5 minutes as Jess just sat there smiling and giggling at him.

"Dude shut up already." Roman said finally getting Seth to quiet down about her brothers. He talked about them as if they were gods, but he didn't have to grow up them. "So how old are you anyway?"

"23, soon to be 24 actually." She said as she remembered her birthday coming up next month.

"Anybody want a beer?" Seth asked as he stood up and began to walk to the kitchen. Dean and Roman accepted but Jess didn't say a word.

"It's okay if you want one. Nobody here is gonna yell at you." Dean said in her ear as he leaned into her. Seth came back with 4 beers and held one out to her, not sure if she actually wanted one or not. She hesitantly accepted it and Dean popped the lid off for her.

"Is Dean actually teaching you anything or just standing by and watching you? Cause I can teach you a few things in the ring if he isn't." Roman said in a flirtatious voice that made her slightly uncomfortable.

"I teach her just fine." Dean said as he sipped on his beer.

"I was kidding. I know you would you hard ass. You probably use the poor girl as your punching bag." Roman said with a smile.

"Believe it or not it actually felt like he was when we first started." Jess said as she relaxed in their company.

"Dean's always been a little rough." Seth said and Jess shook her head.

"A little rough? Getting in the ring with him is like getting hit by a truck." She said making them all laugh.

"Come on I'm not that bad." Dean said making Jess look over at him.

"Okay maybe not that bad, but still pretty rough." She said as their eyes locked. The way he was looking at her in that made turned her on incredibility.

"Anyone for another?" Dean asked as he placed his empty beer on the table and stood.

"I'll go for another." Jess said and she knew that she shouldn't but she was enjoying her freedom to finally be able to do some of the things she once enjoyed, and drinking was one of them. So after having about 4 beers and feeling the slightest bit tipsy Jess cut herself off. The four of them immersed themselves in conversation and laughed at each others corny jokes. Jess had almost forgotten what it was like to laugh and have a good time.

"Jess I think it's past your bed time." Dean said as he placed his 6th empty bottle on the table and stood.

"I just think sleeping beauty wants to get back to his room. It was great meeting you guys." She said as she stood and followed Dean out of the room.

"Sleeping beauty, eh?" He said as he smiled and bit his lip before smacking her ass. She let out a chuckle as he buzz set in making her giddy and relaxed at the same time. When they got into the elevator Dean took her in his arms and began to kiss her with rough passion, backing her up against the elevator wall. Jess wrapped her arms around his neck and arched her body into his as the heat and tension between them grew. She wanted him to take her back to his room and give it to her good cause god knows she hasn't had it in a while.

"Dean." She breathed against his lips as the doors opened again and made them break apart.

"Yeah Jess?" He asked as his tone came out breathless and sexy making Jess only want him more.

"Take me to your room." She said looking up into his eyes and he knew exactly where this was going to go as he picked her up so her legs were around his waist. Thankfully no one was around to witness this, considering it was nearly 1 in the morning and everyone was asleep. As Dean reached in his pocket to pull out his room key Jess continued to kiss from his jaw line and down his neck as his erection continued to grow. When he finally got the key in the lock he pressed down on the handle as he stumbled and realized it was already open.

"Jess hold on, I think someone's in there." He said as he set her down and peeked inside. Sure enough his light was on and he cautiously walked inside with Jess behind him. Layla was laying on his bed in lingerie watching television and he cursed himself inwardly.

"Babe is that you?" She called as she turned her head and saw him with a smile. Dean did his best to try and hide his boner she he held his hands clasped in front of it.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as he walked inside and Jess felt the anger rise in that quickly turned awkward.

"Well I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd come and surprise you but you weren't here." She said as she got up and began to play with the collar of his shirt. Her eyes went around him and landed on Jess causing her to frown.

"Who the hell is she?" She demanded in an accusing tone as she pointed her finger at Jess.

"That's Jess, the diva I'm training. We went out to get something to eat." He told her and her expression softened before turning back into a smile.

"Hi I'm Layla, it's great to finally met you." She said as she walked over and shook her hand. Jess wanted to badly to keep her grip and drag her to the door to toss her out so her and Dean could continue what they were doing but she let go and forced a tight smile.

"Yeah, like wise. I'm gonna go to bed, see you in the morning." Jess said as she turned on her heel and left. The flame Dean had lit inside her was burning slow and steady, showing no signs of dying down even after she'd locked herself in her room away from him.

"How did you get in here?" Dean questioned as Layla began to put the moves on him. He was extremely pissed off that she'd been here to ruin the moment he was about to have with Jess. He planned to make love to her roughly, the only way that Dean knew how to.

"I just went down to the front desk and got an extra key." She said with a sly smile as she pulled it from her bra and held it up.

"Listen I'm just gonna go to sleep." He said as he walked past her, pulling his shirt off and getting under the blankets. All he could think about was Jess and it was driving him crazy with how badly he wanted her underneath him.

"Well then let me do all the work." Layla said as she crawled on top of him and pulled the blankets down on him.

"Not tonight." He said with a sigh as he pulled them back up and Layla just frowned down at him.

"Is everything okay?" She asked him as she pushed herself off him and sat on the empty side of the bed. "You never say no."

"Listen I'm just really tired, I've had one hell of a week and I've barely slept at all." Dean said getting frustrated with her. He just wanted her to leave so Jess could come back, if she would come back after this but he doubted she would.

"Fine." She said before putting her clothes on and leaving in a huff. Dean let out a sigh and waited a few minuted until he was sure she was gone before getting out of bed and walking to Jess room and knocking.

"Yeah?" She asked in a sleepy voice when she opened the door. She'd changed into her pajamas and it looked like he'd just woken her up.

"Never mind." He said as he retreated back to his room leaving Jess staring after him. She was sure he'd come back to finish what he started but clearly she was wrong. So she closed her door and went back to bed.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N thank you so much for the follows and reviews! DeeMarie426 a special thank you to you! :)**

"Rise and shine it's time to hit the gym!" Dean yelled as he pounded on her door. Jess groaned as she rolled over and buried her head in the pillow trying to fight off her groggy head ache. "Jess let's go." His voice was right above her and louder than ever as he tore the blankets back on her and she was greeted with the sudden coldness of the room.

"Dean." she whined as she reached down as far as she could to find the blanket but Dean tore it completely off the bed.

"You really need to learn how to lock your door, there a lot of creeps in this town." He said as he watched Jess shift around the bed and stick her face between two pillows.

"And you're one of them." Her voice muffled through them. Dean grabbed her by the ankle making her squeal and kick at him as he pulled her down and off the end of the bed and let her drop to the floor with a thud.

"Hey be nice in there to her." Roman called as he stood outside waiting with Seth. Dean only cracked a smile down at her.

"Training's a bitch when you're hung over." He said as Jess just sat on the floor looking like hell had chewed her up and spit her out. She got up slowly and got dressed before fixing her tangled hair and throwing it up in a pony tail before joining the shield members in the hall.

"Hope you don't mind I invited them to tag along." Dean said as he gave her a once over. He couldn't help but think he almost had her in his bed and she could have woken up looking like she did right next to him and he wouldn't have cared.

"Not a problem, more people for me to watch and learn from." She said as they headed into town to the nearest gym.

"Warm up first." Dean told her as they all hoped up on treadmills and began. She went over to the step machine and decided she would get a good cardio workout while working on her butt as well.

"So is there something going on between you and her? You guys seem awful close." Seth said as he looked over his shoulder quickly at Jess to make sure she wasn't within ear shot.

"Well yeah, we're friends." He said and noticed the exchange of smiles between Roman and Seth. "What?" He asked and his friends just shook their head.

"It's obvious you like her. You just look at her differently then you look at any other girl." Seth said and now Dean was confused.

"What's that suppose to mean?" He asked getting defensive.

"Nothing bad. When you look at girls you just have this lust in your eyes but when you look at Jess there's still that lust but it's like it's softened and deeper." Seth began.

"Alright Romeo you need to cut back on the romance novels." Roman said with a chuckle making Seth reach over and up the speed on his treadmill to where Roman almost flew off the back.

"You read romance novels?" Dean asked with a smirk.

"Well I like to read. Those books aren't just for chicks you know, and they're good to use as pointers for dates and stuff." Seth said causing the two other guys to start laughing. Jess looked over at the sound and saw Dean had stopped his treadmill and had his head leaning down on it as he laughed hysterically.

"What did I miss!?" She asked as she hoped off her machine and went over.

"Nothing, just lance romance over here giving us a few tips from his romance novels." Dean said as he pointed at Seth who looked extremely pissed off.

"Awe leave him alone, it's cute that he enjoys sappy romance." Jess said making them laugh even harder. Roman reached over and pinched his cheek as he cooed at him like a baby.

"Little Sethy likes his romance novels because Sethy can't find any romance." He said in a babyish voice. Seth swatted his arm away and hopped off the treadmill.

"You guys suck." He said as he went over and started to lift weights. Dean felt his phone vibrate in his shorts pocket so he stopped his treadmill and walked a little ways away from the three. Jeffs name flashed across the screen so he quickly answered it.

"Hey Jeff." He said as he answered it waiting for him to ask all sorts of questions about his sister.

"You bring her back now!" Matt yelled on the other line.

"How do you know shes even with me?" Dean challenged him.

"It's funny how you show up and stay in town to train my sister and then when you leave she's gone too! I'm not stupid Dean. Either bring her back or I will come and I will get her myself." Matt said in a threatening tone.

"I _dare _you to even try it. You're a monster Matt, a controlling monster who put that girl through hell." Dean retorted trying to keep his voice low so no one could hear him.

"I'm not the monster Dean, you're protecting the monster. I'm coming to get her and you can't stop me." Matt said and the line went dead. Dean felt his blood boil as he looked over at Jess smiling and laughing with Roman. Matt wasn't taking her anywhere if Dean was in the picture.

"Alright let's get in the ring and start practice." Dean said walking back to them with a cool expression. He took Jess into the ring and they squared up, beginning with kicks and punches before moving on to holds. Their bodies would press close together and each time they would feel the sparks between them.

"Alright I want you to give me a good hurricaran." Dean said as he stood in the middle of the ring. She got up on the top rope and flung herself at him, her calves grasping his neck as she threw her upper body down and around making Dean flip and land on his back along with her. Dean looked at her kind of stunned at how well she did for her first time.

"First move my brother's taught me." She said taking in his expression as she breathed heavily and sat up. Dean's phone began to vibrate again on the table outside the ring and he seen Brad's name flashing as he quickly went to answer it.

"Hello." He said coldly into the phone. He didn't like Maddox at all.

"Dean, how's Jess training coming along?" He asked as Dean grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"She's doing great, improving but still needs work on a few areas." He said, thinking this was just him wanting a report on her progress.

"Good, then you're gonna have to step up your game because her debut has been pushed forward to next Monday night where she will be fighting Natalya. Kaitlyn got injured so we're short a Diva." Brad said and Dean let out a sigh as he looked over at the extremely tired Jess who looked like she was ready to call it a day.

"Alright I'll relay the message." He said as he hung up without even waiting for a reply and getting back in the ring. "Come on, get up we gotta cover more." He said and she let out a sigh as she stood, her joints aching.

"What was that about?" She asked him as she got into the fighting stance again.

"Your debut is next week, someone got hurt and they need you to fill in for them. I'm going to make sure that when you debut you blow the entire Diva's locker room away." Dean said and Jess knew that she was about to be pushed way past her limits.

"Come on Jess, you can do it." Dean encouraged her as she did her best to keep up with him. Her energy was spent and she was going on nothing so when Dean told her how to fold her neck in when he gave her a suplex, she laid on the mat and didn't get back up.

"Jess are you okay?" He asked worried as he knelt down beside her, terrified he'd hurt her.

"Just leave me here to die." She said in a raspy voice as she threw her arm over her eyes. Dean went over top of her with his legs slightly parted and began to do push ups, his body going down and touching hers with every one he did.

"What are you doing?" She asked as she moved her arm and looked up at him. Sweat was dripping down his face and his hair stuck to his forehead in a mess that mad him look sexy.

"Getting in my full work out and a little extra." He said with a smile as he went down, kissed her and pushed back up.

"What the hell is going on here!" Layla's voice screeched causing Jess and Dean to jump at the sound of it and turn to her. Jess quickly pulled herself out from under Dean and stood up, putting distance between them as Dean sat with his knees up and slightly parted as he draped his arms over them.

"Well I was going to tell you sooner but I've been busy." Dean said coolly. He remembered when it was hard to break things off with women because he didn't want to hurt their feelings, but now he'd stoned his heart to it after doing it so many times.

"Nu-uh, no. I am not losing you to some trailer trash, country slut." Layla said as the tears and frustration rose inside her. "I love you Dean!" She yelled and the guilt had set into Jess at her admittance because she felt it too, deep down in her she knew it was more than just lust for Dean.

"Look Layla, I'm really sorry but I just can't do this anymore. I have feelings for Jess." He said and Layla looked at him incredulous.

"The only _feelings _you have for her are the ones in your pants." She yelled at him before turning her rage on Jess. "And you, you disgusting, trashy, slut. Once he's done with you he'll throw you away just like all the others. Don't let those blue eyes and his '_sensitive_' side fool you because it's all a show, all smoke and fucking mirrors." She said as she crossed her arms and looked between them. "He's still mine. I'm going to fucking destroy you do you understand me?" Layla said in a threatening voice as she looked at Jess.

"For one thing, I'm not a trailer trash country slut. And secondly I'm definitely not afraid of you." Jess said as she felt her old self spark through. It was a slow process but she was breaking through that outer shell of protection and meekness, becoming the girl her father and brothers had raised her to be, a spunky little firecracker.

"Oh you will be, mark my words." Layla said and Jess stepped back, motioning to the ring as a whole new energy filled her.

"Then why don't you come on and get in this ring with me and we'll go a round." She said making Dean look up at her shocked.

"I'll get you on the main roster where I can humiliate you in front of millions of people." She said through clenched teeth as she turned on her heel and left.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Dean asked as he stood up and looked at Jess.

"From a girl that is slowly make her come back." Jess said with a smile.

"Oh really? Tell me about her?" Dean asked as they both exited the ring and grabbed some towels.

"Well growing up I wasn't the skinniest girl so I was always being picked on and made fun and I had like maybe 2 friends but they turned on me and joined in with the rest of the kids so slowly I began to get this attitude about me and when I hit high school it got way worse because the bullying got way worse. There was this specific group of people who were the main cause and every day they were finding new ways to make my life a living hell. So one day some of the girls from that group cornered me in the bathroom cause they wanted to beat me up. I had done nothing wrong, I kept to myself a lot and didn't bother anybody but people just seemed to have a problem with the way I wasn't afraid to say what was on my mind or how I felt about them because I'd get into a lot of altercations with people and my mouth is just a loose canon, as my dad called it. So as they closed in I snapped and started swinging. My brothers taught me the basics but there were just too many of them so I ended up getting my ass kicked. Let me tell you my dad was pissed when the school called him but after I explained he told me he was proud of me. I had managed to take at least one of the girls out but the other 3 ganged up on me but I went down fighting." Jess explained as she opened up another piece of her life to him.

"Wait, you're telling me you used to be a big girl?" Dean asked with a smile as he tried to picture Jess as a fat little kid.

"Well not like big, I was chunky." She said as she recalled her childhood. She remembered how normal it had been and how close she had been with her family but ever since their father died relationships between them all became strained. She knew she was a burden to Jeff but he was too nice to admit it to her, so she did everything she could to get her life on track as quick as she could so she could move out and do her own thing like she had before. Matt just went crazy after he died taking on the roll of father figure to his younger siblings and trying to run their lives, but as adults in their own lives they defied him until he became meaner and anger, putting his foot down and interfering with what they did.

"Well I kind of had the same problem in high school, big guy, no friends and kind of just sticking out like a sore thumb because our family couldn't really afford much so it was hard fitting in when most of the kids at your school came from rich families. I have an older brother who was always looking out for me as a kid because I was tiny, and all the other kids used to beat on me cause I was an easy target so he was constantly getting in fights on my behalf until I hit around 14 and hit a growth spurt that made me tower over everyone and finally people just left me alone. They were scared of me, and people are still scared of me." Dean said in a sad voice as he remembered the loneliness he felt. He wanted friends and to fit in and for his family to be normal but it never happened.

"So what happened to your brother?" Jess asked as they sat together on a bench sharing their teenage angst.

"Don't know, last time I heard he was in jail because of gang related shit but I don't talk to my family much." He said as he looked down at his hands. Roman and Seth were long gone by now leaving Jess and Dean alone. Jess went silent as she went deep in thought. Dean reached out and grabbed her hand in his gently breaking her train of thoughts to look up at him. "Jess Matt called and told me to bring you home. Said if I didn't he would come and find you. I won't let him touch you Jess, I promise." Dean said and Jess wanted him to know why. Why Matt was so adamant about keeping her with him and everything horrible that went on with her addiction and what was going through her head at the time.

"I know you won't and I'm going to offer this to you one time and one time only so you can either take it or leave it. There is a bar down the street that we can go and talk, where you can ask me anything you want to know and I'll give you every nitty gritty detail and explain what's wrong with Matt." She said and his heart began to skip beats. He was finally going to be able to really get into Jess.


	11. Chapter 11

Jess was tense and nervous as she slid into the both across from Dean, unable to look at him as her decision weighed her down. She considered bolting but she stayed because this is what she wanted, someone to know.

"Jess if you don't want to go through with it you don't have to." Dean said in a soft voice as his hand slid across the table and covered hers.

"No, I'm ready to get it out of me. I've bottled it up inside for so long it literally hurts." She said and Dean understood. He'd bottled up his own demons and every now and again they'd kick his ass. "Ask me something." she prompted him to get the conversation going.

"Alright, I'm gonna try as simple as I can right now. What's the deal with Matt? He's a massive concern of mine because I find him dangerous." Dean said as the worry set in the back of his mind. He hoped the older Hardy showed up so he could pulverize him.

"Matt is in a poor mental state of mind, has been ever since I can remember. He'd always lash out for no reason and always carried around this rage that seemed to have stuck with him through out his whole life. In his mind he's just trying to protect me but he's doing it in all the wrong ways. He always has to be in control and when he's not his anger just spirals out of control and he lashes out at anyone within 10 feet of him." She explained. "He used to be so good at containing himself because our Dad used to keep him in check but ever since he died he just hasn't been the same. And when Matt says he's gonna do something he does it, so if he said he was going to come looking for me and bring me home you can bet he's going to try his hardest to do just that." Jess said as she looked dean in the eyes in complete seriousness and worry.

"And that's going to be a problem because I'm a man of my word also and he's not getting near you. What about your addiction? What started that?" Dean asked getting to the deeper part of it.

"What started my addiction was actually the first boy who ever took an interest in me." She said in a shameful voice. "I was 16 and he was 20, we met at a wrestling gig that my brothers were doing around North Carolina and we got to talking and I developed feelings for him. It was the first time I'd fallen for someone and after all that shit I swore he'd be the last person I let in." Dean felt a slight pride come over himself because right at that moment Jess was letting him in, defying her own vow.

"And what was that like?" He asked again as a waitress made her way over after tending to other customers. The bar was fairly busy for a Wednesday night. "2 beers." Dean said and she was off.

"It was a living hell. He got me to inject myself the first time, telling me how great it would be but I didn't want to, kept telling him no but he pulled that _if you love me_ bullshit and I was blinded by what I thought was love when really I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I fell in with that crowd and soon we were doing it almost every day. I got kicked out of my house because my dad was so angry and moved to the worst part of town you could think of in this cracked out little apartment. Every night I was terrified to go to sleep because I thought someone was going to break in and kill me." Jess said as the emotions from the memories bled through into her voice and Dean could literally feel it. He sat and listened intently as she went on.

"Pretty soon I found this guy who I was madly in love with at the age of 18 banging some other chick in our bed so I tossed him the fuck out of my apartment and that's when the real struggle began. I would go days at a time without eating because I'd rather spend my money on getting my fix and soon I could barely even afford those, so I wracked up a debt with Gerry. Everyday was my last in my mind as the drugs took over everything, making me paranoid and moody and depressed. And I heard the rumors about Gerry coming to kill me and every night I would sit in the living room of my rat infested apartment in a chair and just wait, staring at the front door for him to burst in and just end it, put me out of my misery." Jess said as the tears formed in her eyes. She had been in such a dark place at the time that the only thing she truly wanted in life was to die.

"Dean you have to promise me that what I tell you won't be repeated to anyone else. Especially not Jeff, because this is the hardest thing for me to admit." She said as a tear slipped down her cheek. Dean reached across the table and wiped it off her upper lip.

"I swear on my life." He said and she let out a breath of air as she prepared herself for his reaction.

"The night Jeff and Matt had found me passed out in the bathroom stall wasn't an accident. I purposely put that much heroine into to me to kill myself. I couldn't handle being on this earth any more with the lifestyle I was living and believe me I tried to stop, I tried really hard but the withdrawals were too much to handle and I'd cave within a few hours." Her chest went tight as Deans eyes went wide at her confession. Nobody had known her real intentions, just assumed that she was a junkie wanting more from her fix and accidentally taking to much.

"Wow, Jess." Was all Dean could say and now she was ready fro him to walk away from her just like everyone else had. Matt told her once that he was all she had in the world, that as soon as everyone found out about her old ways they would all drop her like she was nothing more than garbage.

"I understand if you don't want anything to do with me any more. That's how the people in my town were when Matt told them about my accidental overdose bunched up in a web a lies. That's generally why I stay away from others because as soon as they find out they avoid me as if it's some disease that you can catch." She said as she wiped under her eyes.

"I'm not walking away from you Jess, in fact I'm grateful you could open up to me and nobody is ever going to hurt you again. Your secret is safe, locked inside my heart along with you." He said looking into her eyes as he took her hand and placed it on his chest, his heart beating strong and steady under his warm skin. She felt the weight on her shoulders lift significantly and she smiled, really smiled for the first time in a long time, across at Dean. "Do you still feel like killing yourself though?" Dean asked her seriously.

"Back home I did, even after my first failed attempt I was gonna try again and again until I succeeded. In fact before Jeff handed me my contract for WWE training I was laying in the bath tub and planned on drowning myself until I heard him knocking. He wasn't home when I got in but as soon as I tried he came knocking and I think that's fates way of saying 'wait Jess, we got a special surprise for you'." She said with a smile. "But to answer your question, nah. Ever since I got that contract I found new hope." She said looking at him with a smile.

"You have no idea ho glad I am that you are still here, sitting in front of me, Jess Hardy." He said and the warmth spread from her heart all the way up to her cheeks. "So what's your full name? I'm just curious." He said putting his chin in his hand as he gave her a sheepish smile.

"Jessica Faith Hardy. What about yours?" She questioned back, thankful to be off the subject.

"Dean Joseph Ambrose." He told her and rolled his eyes, hating his middle name. "I think your name's pretty though, and fitting considering."He said and let the rest of the sentence unfinished but she understood.

"Where the hell is that waitress with our beer?" Jess said as she looked around impatiently.

"Screw it, let's just go and buy our own and have a party." Dean said as he stood and took Jess up with him as they left the bar. When Dean and Jess got to where he parked his car he threw up his hands.

"Why is it always my car?!" He yelled at the sky as the word cheater was spray painted across the body of his car in bright blue.

"So since I told you about my mentally unstable brother you wanna tell me about your crazy ex?" Jess asked as she watched him circle his car to check for more damage.

"Layla isn't even my ex, we just slept together. She had this delusion in her head that we were together but it was all in her head and I told her many times that I didn't want a relationship I just wanted to get laid a lot. Soon after she became obsessed and I tried hard to get rid of her but she just won't leave me alone so I dealt with it, that was, until you came along." Dean said joining her side again.

"Did she do anything else?" She asked.

"Not that I can see on the outside but the inside might be a different story." He said as Jess walked over to the passenger side and opened the door. Sure enough there were cuts in his sears and foam cushioning popped out everywhere.

"She even cut into the dashboard." Dean said in disbelief as he ran his fingers over the rough surface.

"Well now it looks like both of us have our own psychos to deal with, you get my brother and I'll get her." Jess said as she buckled up.

"Are you sure you wanna go up against her? She's pretty tough despite her appearance." Dean said as he was torn between driving the car to the nearest mechanic or calling one and having it towed.

"See Dean that's just the thing about me, when it comes to sharing, I don't do that well and that's usually when people get hurt." Jess said with a devilish gleam in her eyes. She knew she was in for one hell of a ride now once she hit RAW but she was ready for it, with or without Dean by her side.

"There had better be some bite that comes with that bark because you sure can talk the talk but I haven't seen you walk the walk." Dean said catching a side glance from her.

"You'll see soon enough. I can be a nasty bitch sometimes. You couldn't be soft when you were in the drug scene or people would walk all over you, so I guess maybe one good thing came from it." She said.

"So, I'm gonna call a tow truck and we need to hook you up with some ring gear." Dean said changing the subject. He didn't like the way her tone went dark and menacing and her demeanor changed.

"What did you have in mind?"She asked as they sat in the car after Dean made a call.

"Well I was thinking something kind of like the size of a bra with lace and maybe red or blue with a matching thong." Dean said and Jess slapped his arm as she chuckled.

"I'm not wearing lingerie as ring gear, that's something I save for the bedroom." She said in a suggestive tone.

"You have lingerie?" He asked her as he gave her bedroom eyes.

"Wouldn't you love to know. Quit it!" She said as she turned away from his stare.

"Actually I would love to know. At least tell me what color they are." He said as he readied himself to picture it in his mind. Jess had some fairly large breasts and he wondered if they were natural or not.

"Red with black lace and trim." She said as a blush came up to her face. Dean got excited and made the cha-ching motion as if he's just hit the jackpot. Jess just used her hand to cover her face as she laughed at him.

"Man that is awesome, when can I see them? You gonna model them for me?" Dean asked her as he smiled at the thought.

"Since when the hell did this turn into me showing you. You wanted to know the what color they were, you never said anything about wearing them or showing them to you!" She said as he face flushed red.

"Nope now you definitely have to wear them and show me. Preferably tonight if that's okay." Dean said suggestively making her swat at him again and Dean only laughed.

"At the rate you're going I'm not showing you a damn thing." She said and soon it was silent between them as they both calmed down. Jess could see Dean fidgeting and trying to turn his body away from her. "Are you okay?" She asked as she sat up and Deans face went beat red.

"Uh..yeah." He said but she knew something was up.

"You're a bad liar, spill!" She said as she grabbed his shoulder and turned him to sit forward. His hands were attempting to cover the massive bulge in his pants but they didn't so much good because Jess could still see it and her face flushed. "Oh, sorry." She said as she sat back in her seat and looked away blushing.

"It's your fault." He said and the tone of his voice made her bust out laughing.


	12. Chapter 12

Jess was nervous as she paced around the backstage area alone. This was finally it, all her training leading up to now and she felt like she was going to be sick.

"Hey are you okay?" A female voice called and she turned to see A.J Lee had stopped and was looking at her.

"Yeah, just nerves." She said and A.J looked her over, noticing her ring gear.

"First night?" She asked with a smile as she walked over to Jess. She was nothing like her on screen character.

"Yep." She said noting her hands together. A.J grabbed a mental chair from near by and brought it over to her.

"Here sit down you look like your about to pass out. Have you eaten anything today?" She asked as Jess took a seat and rocked her body back and forth to try and shake herself of the nauseating feeling in her gut.

"No, I was afraid I'd barf it up all over myself." She said as she put her head in her hands. Millions of people were about to see her make her debut and all she could think about was her fucking up and making herself look like a complete idiot.

"I'll go get you some water, okay? Just try and relax." A.J said as she touched her shoulder gingerly before quickly going to the refreshment table. The feeling in her stomach got more intense, making her bend over her knees as she felt the sick feeling making it's way up into her throat.

"There you are. Maddox is looking for you, he wants to talk to you before you go on." Dean's voice came form beside her. "Jess don't tell me you're gonna puke." He said as he pulled her hair back noticing her rigid form in the chair as she sat bent over. That's when she started dry heaving and Dean just stood there unsure of what to do.

"I got her water." A.J said as she jogged over and handed it to her. "Take little sips. I remember my first night I was basically doing the same thing, didn't go as far as dry heaving but almost." She said to Jess as she knelt in front of her. Dean knew A.J was a very compassionate person and Jess would be good in her hands.

"Can you make sure she gets to Maddox before she goes on because I have to go and get ready for my own match." Dean said and A.J looked up at him.

"Of course." She said and Dean walked back to the locker room where Seth and Roman were almost done getting ready.

"Where have you been man?" Seth asked as he pulled on his tight black shirt.

"Had to go find Jess, it's her first night and she almost puked." Dean said as he quickly stripped down to his boxers.

"Dude you are so whipped right now and you guys aren't even together." Roman said with a chuckle as Dean threw something at him.

"I am not. She's my responsibility." Dean replied as he pulled his pants up and buttoned them.

"After tonight she's not and then you're a free man. I know you've been waiting for this for weeks." Seth said with a smile that Dean only halfheartedly returned. Sure he'd bitched about having to be her mentor but after spending time with her he got attached. A knock on the locker room door made them all turn as Maddox entered.

"So did you find her?" He asked looking pointedly at Dean.

"Yeah she's with A.J freaking out." He said as he finished putting his gear on.

"Alright well then I'll go on the hunt _again_." Maddox said slightly irritated as he left the locker room. He searched down every hall until he found the two girls laughing together and walked over to them. "Just the diva I was looking for." He said walking up to them and looking at Jess with a smile. "So I just wanted to talk to you and ask how you'd feel about being a face? The creative team are working on a possible storyline for you in the future but until then we just need you to sow good face." Maddox said.

"Sure I have no problem with that." Jess said.

"Good, you're up in 10 minutes so I suggest you get to gorilla." Maddox said before walking away and Jess started to panic again.

"Alright chill out and I'll walk you there." A.J said as they both stood and began to walk. Jess really liked A.J, she seemed like a cool person to get to know. "Now remember, don't think about it. When you get in that ring block everyone else out except for your opponent. Once you get into that state of mind where it's only the two of you then you'll rock it." A.J said as they waited for the current match to end. Jess let out calming breathes as the announcer called out the winner and two superstars walked backstage sweating and holding their sore body parts. "Good luck." A.J said as Natalya's music hit and the diva made her way to the ring. Jess stood at the curtain and waited.

"And making her debut, From Charlotte North Carolina, Jess Hardy!" She walked out as her theme hit, something upbeat the company had picked for her that made the blood pump in her veins as she gave a big smile and waved to the crowd of people. She got into the ring and the ref signaled the match to start. They circled around the ring once before locking up, Natalya getting the upper hand and twisting Jess arm behind her back. Jess reached over her shoulder with her other arm and grabbed her around the neck, bending and flipping her over her shoulder so that she ended up on her back.

"Well this should be an interesting Match up. Jess Hardy, I was told, is the sister to Matt and Jeff Hardy so I wonder if she's a high flyer." Jerry Lawler said as Jess went for a standing leg drop but Nattie quickly moved from underneath her and grabbed her in a head lock once she landed hard on her ass. " "Well so far she ain't doing too good." JBL commentated as Jess struggled to free herself, her hands trying to pry her arm from around her chin, but to no avail. Finally she used her leg to kick up and hit her in the face, knocking her backwards to release her from the hold. She stood and went to the ropes as Nattie stood up and pushed herself off them as she jumped and clothes lined her back down. She could hear the crowd cheering as she climbed up to the top rope, facing towards them and back flipping into the air, getting some major height only to come down and meet the mat. She writhed in pain as she landed hard on her left knee and stomach, Nattie capitalizing on her sore knee as she grabbed it between her legs and jumped down so her knee was driven into the back of it.

"Ouch now that had to hurt!" Jerry said as he watched Jess grab at her sore knee.

"You'd think that having the Hardy blood in her veins she'd be better." JBL said as he watched her from a negative stand point.

"I think she's doing very well for her first night." Jerry said coming to her defense. Nattie grabbed her by the back of the shirt and pulled her up, throwing her into the ropes and waiting until she bounced back to try and deliver a standing drop kick. Jess ducked under her and launched herself off the ropes on the other side of the ring, going back and giving her a running bulldog. It felt easier to perform the moves Dean had taught her on Nattie because she wasn't 6'4 and over 200 pounds. While Nattie was down she went to the top rope again.

"Here she goes again. High flying just like her brother Jeff!" Jerry said in excitement. She launched herself again, this time hitting the swanton bomb on Nattie and going for the pin. She heard the crowd count as the ref hit his hand down on the mat. When he got to 2 Nattie rolled so Jess was on her back and Grabbed her by the legs as she stood. Jess was sweating and sore as she tried to fight her from rolling her onto her stomach but Nattie was stronger.

"Sharp shooter Sharp shooter!" Jerry yelled as Nattie got her in her finishing submission hold and Jess held out as long as she could,, trying to make her way to the bottom rope but it was useless. She was in the middle of the ring and her stomach and legs felt a blaze as she pulled harder on them and finally she tapped out, losing her first match on RAW.

"And that was all she wrote." Jerry said as Nattie began to celebrate her victory in the ring. Jess rolled onto her back and slowly began to stand up as pain flared up in her knee and she began to limp to get out of the ring.

"Is that Layla? What is she doing with that chair?" Jerry asked worried as Layla slid the chair under the bottom rope before getting in. She picked it up and went behind Jess, who had no idea what was going on, bringing the chair up and smashing her in the back of the head and shoulders with all the strength she could muster. Jess fell forward into the ropes before hitting the mat and grabbing at her head. Black dots were lining her vision as she laid there stunned and in pain. Layla then began to kick at her back before pushing her out of the ring with her foot and watching her land hard on the floor below. Jess fought to get to her feet as Layla got out of the ring to come after her.

"I told you you'd pay." Layla said as she got closer to Jess who was know almost standing. As Layla drew closer Jess ran at her and pushed her back until her back collided with the edge of the ring. Her left knee gave out and she fell sideways onto it as the ref got out of the ring and tried to break up the fight. Layla grabbed at her back as she slowly got up and went after her again. Jess used her right leg to push her up so she could kick up her left leg and hit Layla in the gut that sent them both falling backwards.

"Alright enough of this." The ref said as more people came out to stop this. They put themselves between the two diva's as One of the refs placed Jess arm around his shoulders and began to help her back stage. He took her straight to the trainers office to get her knee looked at.

"Well you have some minor swelling and it'll be sore for a few days but other than that you should be fine. As for your head you don't seem to have a concussion so that's good." He said as he prodded at her knee making her inhale sharply. "Take a 2 ibuprofen twice a day for the next 2 days and you should be good." He said as she finished with her and she slowly got off the table and hobbled out of the office.

"You in my office now." Maddox said sternly as he stood outside the trainers waiting for her. He looked pissed. She followed him to his office and seen Layla already sitting there and she glared up at her.

"What the hell was that!?" He demanded as he slapped his hands down hard on his desk as he eyed both of the girls.

"That was someone losing her shit on live television." Jess said stating the obvious. Maddox turned his glare from her to Layla.

"That was uncalled for and extremely unprofessional of you. I could fire you." Maddox said in a flurry of rage.

"I can promise you sir it won't happen again." Layla said coolly as she sat with a look of sheer ice on her face. Someone knocked on the door and Maddox looked like he was about to loose his shit too.

"What is it?" He demanded and a woman walked inside and went over to him holding a piece of paper and whispering in his ear. His look of anger turned into one of interest. "That sounds like a good idea actually." He said and the woman smiled before leaving. "Looks like we're turning your off screen feud into an onscreen one." Maddox said with a devious smile that Layla returned. "Now get out of my office." He said as he sat down and Layla stood up.

"I'll get you bitch." She said as she walked out ahead of her. Jess limped from the room and went straight to the womens locker room to shower and get her stuff so she could leave. She remembered dean was in a main event match that wasn't until later on in the evening and she sighed as she sat in the hallway by the parking lot door.

"Hey how are you feeling" A.J said as she held her car keys and bag in her hand. She stopped and sunk down the wall to sit next to her.

"Like absolute garbage. Now I gotta wait for Dean to finish his match which isn't for a while and I just want to leave." She said as she rolled her head back until it was touching to wall.

"I could give you a ride, it's on my way." She said as she stood and helped Jess to her feet.

"Thank you so much." She said as A.J helped her to her car.

"So what happened with you and Layla?" A.J asked as they began to drive.

"Dean happened." She said placing her head against the cool glass of the window.

"Yikes then you better watch out. She's crazy about him." A.J said.

"Yeah I think the chair whispered that in my ear when it hit me in the back of the head." She said causing A.J To laugh.

"Just watch out with Dean. He's got a rep the size of Texas for using girls like you to his advantage." She said and Jess looked over at her.

"You think he's using me?" She asked and A.J gave her a sympathetic look.

"I'm not saying he is I'm jut saying watch out. You're not the first girl he's ever acted this way towards and the way he is is just horrible. He's mean and ruthless when he gets what he wants." Her words felt like a stake being driven into her heart. Was it really all a show? A.J dropped her off at the hotel and she went inside, going up to her room and crashing on the bed as her body gave out. When she turned her head she eyed the mini fridge in her room before getting up and opening it, looking at all the little bottles of alcohol before grabbing a bunch and sitting on her bed.

"Here's to my first night on RAW." Jess said as she unscrewed the lid and downed the bottle. She could tell it was tequila by the taste and way it burned when going down, causing her face to scrunch up. "Now that's the good stuff." She said as she tossed the bottle onto the floor and picked up another. As she downed bottle after bottle A.J's words stuck in her head and created a deep boiling rage inside of her. She'd been used once and she swore it would never happen again.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N thank you so much for the follows and reviews! :)**

Dean was tired, sore and angry as he drove back to the hotel. After his match he'd looked for Jess everywhere and he couldn't find her. After asking around someone finally told him they'd seen her leave with A.J and lord knew where she was at this point. He could only hope that she was safe in her room and god knew she was going to hear it from him when he seen her. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep if he didn't see her so he went straight to her room. He tried the door handle only to find it locked and he pounded on the door.

"Jess if you're in there you better open the fucking door." He said as his fist relentlessly pounded against the wood until a very drunk looking Jess answered the door.

"Calm your shit." She said looking up at him before walking back into her room. Dean walked in after her and slammed the door shut, looking around and noticing the tiny empty bottles of alcohol before his eyes found her again.

"Why didn't you wait for me?" He asked her in an angry tone only to garner a glare from her.

"I dunno maybe it was the chair I received to the back of my head or the fact that my knee was screaming in agony and I just wanted to come here. It's not like you care, you didn't even come to check on me after your psycho ex attacked me." She slurred in an angry tone.

"For the last time she's not my ex!" Dean yelled at her. He was way beyond pissed at this point. "And you're being ridiculous right now, I don't even want to deal with you." He spat at her.

"Then don't. Nobody fucking asked you to babysit me you just took on the job yourself." She shot back and Dean ran a hand threw his hair trying to keep himself from blowing up at her.

"Are you kidding me right now?" He asked her as his eyes turned to slits.

"No I'm not. I refuse to be just another one of your skanks." She spat back and he looked at her incredulous.

"Jesus Christ, now you've got to be fucking joking. If that were the case I wouldn't be going through so much trouble to keep you _safe_. It's pointless talking to you while you're like this so I'll just wait till your sober because at least then you think logically." He said as he made for the door.

"Don't even fucking bother. I'm not a child that needs to be protected anymore Dean. I've taken care of myself since I was 17 and then people just continually involved themselves in my life and fucked me up. I'm gonna do things my way from now on!" she yelled back at him. Dean couldn't believe how much he resented her at the moment.

"Jess we all now that come morning I'm the first person you're going to come see." He said as he turned to look at her one last time before leaving her room and slamming the door again. He began to walk to his hotel room, his temper at an all time high, when Layla appeared in front of him.

"Sounds like you and lover girl aren't getting along so well." She mocked him as she stood with her hands on her hips.

"I'm not in the mood to deal with you either." He said as he kept walking but Layla just followed behind him.

"I know exactly what you need and you know too." She said as she ran her hand down his chest. Dean grabbed it and looked at her. She could see the hunger in his eyes and smirked, knowing exactly what was going to happen because it was Dean and he couldn't help himself. He pulled her along behind him and brought her into his room, pushing her down on the bed and taking his clothes off in a rage. "I knew you couldn't resist." She said with a devilish smile.

"Shut up." He growled as he got on top of her. She loved when he was mad because it made for great sex. There was a guilt deep inside of him but he ignored it as the anger took over him and he put it all into Layla, with every thrust and grind of his hips he buried his anger in her until she cried out in pain filled pleasure and collapsed on the bed beside her as sweat dripped down his forehead..

"Wow, you're an animal." Layla said as she scooted over and placed her head on his chest. Dean was too tired to push her away so he settled for falling asleep just the way they were. When Jess woke up the next morning her head was pounding and she felt like she was going to be nauseous as she put her feet on the floor and held her head in her hands. She could faintly remember the fight she had last night with Dean and she felt bad. She'd always been an anger filled drunk and took it out on the wrong people.

"Better go apologize." She said as she let out a sigh and got up, heading to his room. It was early and he was probably still asleep, recovering from his match last night but she needed to apologize. She tried his door handle and found it was unlocked so she gave a knock as she opened the door and walked inside.

"Dean I just wanted to talk - Oh my god." She said and stopped dead at the sight in front of her. Their bodies were tangled together under the covers and Layla's eyes slowly fluttered open at the sound of her voice and she smiled in triumph as she looked at Jess. Dean stirred beside her and when his eyes opened her seen Jess looking at him shocked.

"Jess what's wrong?" He asked and then he felt Layla move beside him and he froze. "Oh shit." he said as he scrambled out of bed and tried to put his boxers and pants on as fast as he could when she bolted from the room. "Jess wait!" He said going after her. She was halfway to her room, her pace never slowing. He began to jog after her and when she heard his footsteps she turned and glared at him, stopping him dead. She had tears in her eyes but the anger was most dominant on her face.

"She was right about you. You use people!" She spat at him and he flinched at her words.

"I never once used you Jess, I don't know who put that in your head but they were wrong." He said back calmly to try and reason with her.

"Really? Then what the fuck was that? You told me you were done with her. Well guess what? Now I'm the one who's done with you. I was stupid and naïve to think guys like you can change." She said as she turned on her heel and reached for her door handle as Dean tried to reach out and grab her arm to stop her. He didn't want what they had to end, especially not like this, but she yanked her arm away.

"Don't." She said as she gave him a look that could kill as she went into her room. Dean ran his fingers through his hair as he walked back to his room angry at himself.

"Get out!" He yelled at Layla and she jumped at his sudden outburst.

"What did I do?" She asked having pulled on her clothes. He took her by the arm and pulled her to his door.

"I said get out. I don't want any more to do with you. Now you're just playing me to get back at her." Dean said as he shoved her out and slammed the door in her face. He walked back into the room and paced around before picking up the nearest object, a decorative vase belonging to the hotel, and whipped it across the room where it shattered against the wall. He sat on the end of his bed as he rubbed his hands down his face before he laid back before he completely destroyed everything in the room and punched holes in the walls.

"Hello?" Jeff said as he answered the phone. Jess was sitting cross legged on her bed as she used the hotel phone to call her brother, the tears staining her cheek.

"Jeff I messed up and I fell for him. I don't know what to do." She said as fresh tears began.

"Hold on, who did you fall for?" Jeff asked confused. He could tell his sister was on the verge of a melt down by the way her voice fluctuated when she spoke.

"Dean. I thought he liked me too but then I found him in bed with his ex." She said and Jeff didn't know what to say.

"He ain't worth it then Jess. Have you seen Matt at all?" He said as he changed the subject.

"Not yet but I got his message. Hell I'm so done right now that if I see him I'll probably just get in his car without a fuss and let him take me." She said as the numb inside her faded out into just not caring anymore about anything.

"Don't say that. You can't let one person ruin everything for you, so just forget about him. Though I will say I am shocked because I thought he liked you too." Jeff said and those words stabbed her in the chest. He even had her brother fooled.

"Hey babe can you help me?" Jess faintly heard a woman call in the background and her brows knitted together.

"Who was that?" She asked curious who could be at Jeff's house. He never brought anyone home.

"That's Beth. One sec." He called to her. "I'll call you back in a bit." Jeff said and Jess felt annoyance rise up inside her.

"Don't bother." She said as she lashed out at him. She needed to talk to him and he was brushing her off for someone else.

"Hey don't be like towards me, I'm not the one who hurt you Jess. Now I'll call you back." He said as he scolded her and she let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry, bye." She said as she hung up and then hung her head low. She needed something to help ease her hangover so she went into her suitcase and pulled out a bottle of Tylenol, popping two into her mouth before heading to the bathroom and sticking her head under the tap as she got a mouth full of water and swallowed. Her knee wasn't as bad today but it still ached every now and again as she headed back to lay on her bed and prepared herself for 2 very boring days of watching TV and ordering room service. Dean on the other hand had a lot of anger to get out of him as he changed and headed to the gym, finding the first punching bag and laying into it relentlessly.

"Hey man, why didn't you wait for us?" Seth asked as him and Roman joined him in the gym half an hour later and Dean stopped for a minute to wipe the sweat from his face.

"Because I'm pissed off." He said turning his attention back to the bag and trying to go harder than the first time. Dean was only satisfied with a workout if he knew he pushed himself almost to a breaking point.

"Alright then why don't the three of us have a go in the ring then and you can get more anger out while also getting in some practice." Roman said as him and Seth headed into a separate room where a giant ring stood in the center and they got inside. Dean followed them inside and was grateful for the challenge.

"Are we making this a 3 way or handicap?" Seth asked looking between the two.

"Every man for himself, like always." Roman said as he used the ropes to help stretch him out a bit. Each of them picked a corner to start out in before going at one another, knowing each person's moves and counters making it challenging to catch the others off guard. In the end Seth and Roman ganged up on him like they always did as the three of them wore themselves out. They all got out of the ring and sat with bottles of water as they recuperated.

"So what's up, why you pissed?" Roman asked chugging half his water and then dumping some over his head. He picked at the label on his bottle as he thought about telling them about Jess.

"Just a girl. It finally happened guys, cupid hit me with his fucking truck." He said as Seth and Roman smiled to one another.

"No way, the tough Dean Ambrose has gone soft on a girl?" Seth asked as he leaned in to pat his friend on the shoulder.

"So then what's the problem? She doesn't feel the same way?" Roman asked in his therapist voice. It annoyed the hell out of Dean but at the same time he appreciated the fact that he cared.

"Oh she did feel the same way until she caught me in bed with Layla." He said as he looked down at his hands. Both of his friends went silent for a moment.

"You fucked up." Seth said in a low tone after a while as he finished off his water and Dean shot him a look.

"Don't you think I know that? I just gotta figure out how to fix things and the first thing that's being fixed is the Layla situation, she's gone." Dean said as he chucked his empty plastic bottle across the room and began to stand.

"Well if you need any help Seth and I are always here for you." Roman said as him and Seth followed suit. Dean knew he wouldn't be able to get within 10 feet of her to talk to her so his friends could actually play an important role of getting her back.

"Well who is she?" Seth asked and Dean actually cracked a smile at him, knowing the curiosity must have been killing him.

"It's Jess." He said as they left the building. It came as a shock to Roman but Seth wasn't all too surprised because he'd seen the way Dean would look at her when he first brought her with him. First he had to figure out a way to get Layla completely out of his life and off his back when an idea popped into his mind.

"So...would either of you be interested in taking Layla off my hands?" He asked getting in the car and looking between the shocked faces of the two.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N Thank you so much for the follows and reviews and faves and just thank you so much! xoxo :')**

"Nope, I am not being your fall guy." Seth said simply as he walked away from Dean and Roman who sat on the couch, Dean rubbing his temples as he tried his best to convince Seth for 2 days to take on the job of getting rid of Layla. This was not the way any of them wanted to start their morning, Seth especially.

"It's not like it's a for real thing. All you have to do is pretend and then drop her once she's over me." Dean said and Seth came back laughing while holding a bottle of water.

"Ha! What the hell makes you think that if she moves on from you to me that she won't be the same way? Dropping her isn't easy as you're finding out." Seth said as he leaned on the wall and looked at his friends as he took a gulp. "Why can't Roman do it?" He asked as he eyes the bigger man and Dean turned his gaze to him, batting his lashes.

"Roman..." He said in a sugary sweet voice but Roman only shook his head.

"Hell no I am not bringing that into my life. This is your past coming back to bite you right in the ass you do know that." Roman said as he stood and stretched, his bare chest on show as he walked away in his pajama pants. "I'm going for coffee, anyone want something?" He called from the bathroom.

"I'll get a coffee and a danish." Seth called back.

"Yeah I'll get a danish too." Dean added not being much of a coffee drinker.

"So what about your plans for Jess, anything yet?" Seth asked and Dean just shook his head.

"I'm drawing a blank here, this has never happened before and it's frustrating." Dean said standing up as Roman walked back into the room to pull on a pair of pants with his toothbrush hanging from his mouth.

"Right now she needs space." Roman garbled over his toothbrush before going back to brushing.

"Well thank you almighty Guru I had no idea." Dean said back sarcastically. Jess was craving coffee. How long had been since she'd had one? She couldn't remember. She put down the magazine she was reading that she'd found stuffed in one of the end table drawers as she stood and grabbed her wallet before heading out. She didn't have a car and her only means of transportation was no longer an option so she settled for walking. There had to be a coffee place nearby. As she scanned the busy streets she spotted one across the busy street and stepped down to the gutter as she waited for a convenient time to cross without becoming a part of the asphalt. Finally spotting an opportunity she ran as if she was in a marathon and the curb was her finish line. When she made it to the other side she pushed her way through the crowded sidewalk and made it to the door only to find it just as packed inside as she got in line.

"Jesus look at this, this is ridiculous. Dean said as him and Roman walked into the packed coffee shop and stood at the back of the line. "Why did I have to come?" Dean asked annoyed. Patience wasn't something he had enough of and just the thought of waiting in the line made him fidget. His eyes scanned up the line of suits only to land on the back of a very familiar head 5 people up in line.

"I made you come because you're an asshole and this is punishment." Roman said coolly with his hands in his pockets as the line moved. Dean couldn't keep his eyes off her as he watched her look around and bob from foot to foot every now and again. "See someone that caught your eye?" Roman asked seeing how concentrated his friend looked. He leaned over to get a view of who had caught Dean's interest and seen the back of Jess without even realizing it was her. "She looks good from the back, not much of an ass but still enough to get a handful." Roman said only to receive a punch in the arm from Dean.

"Don't talk about Jess that way." Dean said as Roman held his arms up signifying a truce.

"Didn't even realize it was her, you could have said something instead of staring at her and drooling." He said and she must have heard the commotion along with with other people in the line as she turned to look back. Dean tried to turn so she wouldn't notice it was him and when he turned back she was at the counter ordering. "Real smooth." Roman said with a chuckle and Dean began to chew his lower lip in order to refrain from hitting him again. Jess turned and was heading right his way to leave and Dean prepared himself, ready to try and talk to her again.

"Hey Jess!" Someone called from inside the restaurant and A.J was stood waving her arm and catching her attention before he could. She looked at her with a smile and went over and Dean felt himself deflate as his chance came and went at the hands of A.J. He glared over at her and Roman elbowed him as their turn came at the counter. Dean wasn't paying attention though, he was straining to hear the conversation going on between the two.

"So did you wanna come with me to the club tonight?" A.J asked as she sucked her cold frappe looking drink through a straw.

"Sure sounds like it's be fun." Jess said taking a sip of her coffee.

"Well gimme your number and I'll text you or something when we're leaving." She said as she dug through her purse and pulled out her cell.

"I don't have a phone." Jess said and A.J looked at her as if she was an alien species.

"Seriously? You should really get one it would make your life so much easier." She said and Jess thought it over. It would be nice to be able to call her brother whenever she wanted and have a few people to talk to.

"Alright, where would I go?" She asked and A.J picked up her purse and drink.

"I'll take you to get one right now." She said and Jess smiled as her and A.J left and chattered the whole way, Dean and Roman following them out.

"So did you get an earful of gossip or was there actually something interesting said?" Roman asked. He'd already ordered and told Dean they were leaving but Dean wouldn't budge until he'd heard the end of the conversation.

"They're going to a club, so do you wanna go with me?" He asked as him and Roman gave him a weird look.

"You never wanna go to clubs, bars are your thing." He said as they quickly walked across the street. "Besides you don't even know which club they're going to and you, my good friend, are starting to become a stalker." Roman said and Dean rolled his eyes.

"I'm not stalking her I'm looking out for her. Do you know what guys are like in clubs after they've been drinking and they see a pretty girl like her? I know because I've been that guy." He said as he pointed at himself. Roman let out a sigh because with Dean there was never an end to an argument until he got what he wanted.

"Fine, but only this one time and you better not do anything stupid." Roman said as they made their way back up to his room.

"I'm not gonna make any promises because the first guy I see laying a hand on her is getting his skull smashed into the pavement." Dean said as he sat down with his danish and began to eat.

"How about for 1 night you keep a level head and not try and kill anyone. I talk to A.J sometimes so maybe I can find out where she's heading but not if you have that attitude." Roman said. He was always so calm and relaxed with a high temperament and Dean just didn't understand how.

"Fine, but if I think someone's hurting her then the deal is void and I'm free to lose my shit. Okay?" He asked and Roman just nodded knowing Dean was a man of his word.

"How does this thing even work?" Jess asked as she held the android in her hand and began to tap repeatedly on the screen waiting for it to do something.

"You have to turn it on." A.J said taking the phone form her and showing her what to do. She added in her number before handing it back. "So I'll text you around 8 and tell you were to meet me." She said as she drove back to the hotel. "How's your knee? Up for a little training sesh in the hotel gym?" A.J asked her but Jess shock her head.

"Medic said I need to stay off it for a 2-3 days so I'm gonna wait till tomorrow." She said as they headed to the elevator. She kept fiddling with the phone until she was good with all the basics and called to tell her brother Jeff about it and to give him the number.

"Alright see you tonight." A.J said before the doors closed and took her up to the next floor. Roman knew where her room was, directly across the hall, and went to knock on it.

"Looking for me?" She asked coming up behind and starling him.

"Yeah, just wondering if you were busy tonight?" He asked and she beamed up at him. Roman always thought she was a pretty girl and she had some good moves in the ring.

"Actually yeah, going out tonight with Jess to club Fever." She said and Roman just nodded.

"Really? See I was heading there too and was going to ask if you maybe wanted to go with me but guess I'll be seeing you there." He told her in a flirtatious voice as he walked backwards to his room.

"I guess you will." She said back as she bit her lip and then went inside. Roman relayed the message and all that was left to do was wait. As the time came closer Jess scrambled to find something to wear. Clothes flew everywhere as she put on and pulled off different items of clothing trying to mismatch until she found something she was satisfied with. Finally she let out a huff and grabbed her phone to call A.J.

"What are you wearing?" She asked as soon as she picked up.

"Either a dress or Jeans and a crop top. Having issues?" She asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah but I'll figure it out soon." She said rubbing a hand down her face as she looked at the clothes strewn across the floor.

"Alright just meet me down in the lobby in an hour and make sure you look hot." She said before hanging up. Jess eyed her clothing before reaching for her black ripped skinny jeans and a pink v neck belly top with lace trimming with black wedges. Then she set off to do her hair and make-up only having a few minutes until she had to meet A.J. Satisfied she grabbed her purse and headed out the door. Dean on the other hand could give two shits about the way he looked, rocking his faded blue jeans, a grey muscle shirt and dark jean jacket.

"Are you almost done?" He asked as he sat on the couch with Seth as they waited for Roman to finish getting ready.

"Yep let's head out." Roman said and Dean grabbed his keys off the coffee table as the three of them headed out. Jess and A.J arrived before them and stepped into the dim club as the music pumped and neon lights danced about in the air. Thankfully it wasn't crowded because it was a Thursday night.

"Did you wanna dance or head to the bar first?" A.J yelled over the music.

"Let's go to the bar." Jess yelled back as she pointed to the cute barman who was tending. Finally the 3 guys arrived and Dean's eyes scanned the room before landing on her perched at the bar laughing and smiling with the bartender. God she was beautiful and Dean felt the jealousy rise in him.

"I'm gonna get us some drinks, go and find a table." Roman said as he made his way easily through the dance floor. Him and Seth found a table where he could still see Jess but stay hidden as well.

"Hello ladies." Roman said coming up beside A.J who turned to him with a smile. Jess looked around in hopes of spotting Dean but he wasn't anywhere to be found. As hurt as she was by him she still wanted to be with him.

"Hey Roman, wanna dance?" A.J asked jumping off the stool.

"Hold on while I go and give these drinks to the guys and then I'll meet you on the dance floor." He said as he winked at her. Jess noticed her blush and nudged her.

"Do you like roman?" She asked and when she nodded her mouth fell open a little. "I thought you had a thing for Dolph?" She asked and A.J just shook her head.

"All a TV gimmick, we're just friends. Come dance with us." She said as Roman came back and took her hand. Jess followed them onto the dance floor where she began to move to the rhythm of the music and escaped with it. Dean watched her as she moved, the lust inside him growing for her as he watched her hands slid down her body every so often as she danced. And then the asshole struck and Dean was on his feet. Jess felt someone slip their hands around her waist and pull her into them as they began to grind up against her.

"Back off." She said as she turned and pushed the guy away before moving. He followed her and began to do it again, only this time he held tight and forced himself upon her as his lips roughly meet hers and she struggled to get him off her. "Get off!" She yelled as she tried to get her knee up to kick him in the groin until he was forcefully pulled off her and thrown back back a very pissed off looking Dean. He got on top of him and punched him in the jaw, pulling back to strike again but Jess grabbed him by the elbow and began to yank on him.

"Dean stop it!" She yelled as he stood and looked her over.

"Did he hurt you? Cause I'll bust his head open like a fucking grape, I swear to god." He said as he looked her over.

"Of course I'm fine but you could have just pulled him off instead of trying to beat him up." Jess said as she looked at Dean and crossed her arms as she took a defensive stance. Dean only stepped closer to her as a slow song began and took her in his arms. She didn't fight him.

"Look I'm really sorry okay? I just couldn't stand watching that guy forcing himself on you." Dean said into her ear.

"Then maybe now you know a fraction of the way I felt when I seen you in bed with Layla." She said back with venom in her voice.

"That wasn't even suppose to happen. I was just pissed off at you and the next thing I know we're in bed together." He said and Jess stopped their dance to look up at him in disbelief.

"That is a piss poor excuse, you do know that. So if I piss you off is that how you're gonna deal with it?" She asked him and he shook his head.

"Of course not. You'd be the one facing my sexual anger wrath." He said as he gave her a slight smirk hoping to crack her angry exterior but it didn't budge.

"It's not funny Dean these are my feelings you're fucking with." She said and he pulled her against him again as they moved in a slow circle.

"I know and I'm really sorry Jess. I'm trying my hardest to get her out of my life but she just won't leave. You're the one I want." He said into her ear but she pulled away again.

"Well you better try harder because until she's gone from your life I'm the one you can't have." She said as she walked over to A.J who was slow dancing with Roman and whispered in her ear. At first he thought she was asking A.J to take her home but when A.J didn't budge as Jess left Dean followed her out.

"Let me take you back Jess." He said as she was standing on the curb trying to hail a taxi with no success.

"The whole point of this was for me to get away from you." She said as she turned to look at him with her arms crossed. It wasn't because she was mad but because she was freezing in the cold night air and it made her regret not bringing a jacket. Dean noticed her shivering and quickly pulled off his Jean jacket and draped it over her shoulders. It was warm from his body heat and smelled like him but she was slipping it off to hand it back to him.

"Put the damn jacket on and just get in the car." He said in tone that underlined he wasn't going to take any argument about it. With a huff Jess slipped her arms into his jacket and followed him to his car, getting in the passenger seat and sinking against the door. He looked over at her as he got in before starting the car and heading back to the hotel.

"Thanks." She said as she got out, forgetting she was still wearing his jacket and headed up to her room before Dean could say anymore to her. When she flopped onto her bed his scent hit her again and she looked down with a sigh. She knew she'd have t give it back, but it didn't have to be right this second. So stripping down to her underwear Jess wrapped herself up in it and crawled into bed with a sense that Dean was somehow with her, embedded in the tiny fibers of his jacket, as she drifted off to sleep.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N Thank you so much for the reviews, faves and follows! xoxo :)**

Jess clutched Deans jacket in her hand as she searched the arena for him. Every time she'd went to his hotel room he was never there and she searched for him when they arrived in the next city, having driven with A.J and a few other people, but she could never find him.

"Seth where's Dean?" She asked finally spotting the long haired man standing and talking to Randy Orton. She could hear them talking about their storyline as she walked over before he turned his attention to her.

"Well hello there." Randy said with a smile as he checked Jess out making Seth nudge him.

"He should be with Roman in the locker room, if not check catering. Those are the only 2 places he usually ever goes." Seth said and she thanked him before venturing towards the mens locker room and knocking on the door.

"May I help you?" Daniel Bryan asked when he opened the door.

"Is Ambrose in there?" She asked and he looked over his shoulder as his eyes scanned the currently packed locker room before turning back and shaking his head. She turned on her heel and let out a huff before trying catering next. At the rate this was going the jacket was probably never going to get returned and Jess was okay with the thought of that, except that the smell of him on it was slowly fading away every time she wore it, which was quite often. When she got to catering she finally spotted him near the back with Roman and someone she didn't recognize as a wrestler and he threw his head back as his laugh echoed in the room. As she walked over Roman, who was seated opposite Dean, nodded in her direction making him turn his head and she expected his smile to drop but it never faltered for a second.

"Thanks for letting me borrow this, I've been trying to find you for a few days but you disappeared." she said as she held it out to him by the collar and as he took it form her their fingers touched and Jess felt the heat inside her ignite. They hadn't spoken since the incident at the bar and she wondered how he'd been doing.

"Hey it was no problem, you'd have froze standing out there." He said as he tucked it beside him before turning his attention back to the other 2 men. Jess stood there for a moment and contemplated whether or not she should continue the conversation but her feet moved faster than her thoughts and soon she was out of the room and making her way to find A.J.

"What was that about?" Roman asked looking at Dean who suddenly looked really sad. Everything was getting to him and stressing him out to the max. He'd barely slept in days and he trained until Roman and Seth had to drag him from the gym because he was on the verge of passing out. He picked up his jacket and stared at it. Jess was one thing in life he wanted really bad and since things with her were going no where it just made him feel hollow.

"I have no idea what to say to her. She made herself clear that night and Layla isn't gone, she's like the fucking plague man." Dean said as he remembered the texts and calls from her and the random encounters that he tried to avoid.

"Have you even told Layla that it's done and over?" Roman asked as he raised a brow at Dean who nodded his head and let out a sigh before rubbing his eyes. He was rooming with Roman and Seth for the time being and they knew how fucked his sleeping pattern had become. "That's it, I'm talking to her and I'm laying this to rest. I've never seen you this torn up man and it's honestly breaking my heart." Roman said as he pushed his chair back and stood.

"Roman you don't have to do that..." Dean began but Roman held up his hand.

"I know I don't but I want to. You tried and I've seen how hard you've tried so maybe if she hears it from more then 1 person she'll get the message that she needs to back off." Roman said as he left the catering room. Dean put his head down on the table and let out a sigh of relief. He was happy to have such great friends that looked out for him.

"So what's the schedule for tonight?" Jess asked when she seen A.J sitting on the bench doing up her boots and sitting next to her. Upon hearing her voice Layla made her way over and stood a little ways away with her foot up on the bench and glaring at her.

"Please don't tell me you associate with this trash." Layla said slowly as she turned her attention from Jess to A.J making her let out a sigh.

"Are we really going to do this?" A.J asked as she stood up and went over to her bag and rummaged through it.

"Yeah we are. You're suppose to be my friend and yet you go traipsing around with this gutter slut?" Layla said and Jess had enough as she stood and marched up to Layla. a.J turned on her heel and quickly placed herself between the two as she used an arm to hold each girl back.

"Watch who you start calling names bitch because I swear to god I will smash your face into the concrete." Jess said pointing her finger at Layla.

"Oh really? Who was the one laid out in the ring last week? Who had to go and see the trainer about her knee? Wasn't me." Layla said back.

"For one it was Nattie who injured my knee, not you, and secondly you had to sneak up behind me and use a chair. Fight me face to face you coward." Jess said and she seen the rage it ignited in Layla's eyes as she tried her best to push A.J out of the way.

"I'll show you a fucking coward, I'll making you go crying back home where you belong!" She said and as both of them pushed A.J out of the way they collided with each other and ended up on the floor as they rolled about feeding each other shots.  
"Cut it out!" A.J yelled as she tried to pry them apart. "Someone help in here!" She yelled and soon the door opened as Roman rushed inside. He'd already been on his way towards the locker room and when he heard A.J call for help he broke into a jog. The site before him would have made him laugh except for the fact A.J was doing her best to pry them apart.

"You grab Jess and I'll get Layla." He said thinking it was the perfect opportunity to get her out of there and talk to her. He grabbed her from under her arms as A.J yanked Jess and fell backwards with her, both girls still fighting to have another go with the other.

"I'm not through with you yet!" Layla yelled as Roman began to take her from the room. She grabbed onto the door frame as her breathing came out in labored huffs but Roman pried her fingers from them and closed the door before setting her down and giving her a menacing look.

"Alright Layla, this is getting out of control and both of you are acting ridiculous. Dean already said he doesn't want to be with you so just stop-" He began but tears sprang into her eyes.

"Roman I love him. What makes her so god damn special? What does she have that I don't?" She asked as she stared up at him. Roman ran a hand through his hair.

"Maybe it's because she doesn't act like a psycho or the fact she isn't clinging to his leg and practically begging him to bang her or that she ruined his car. I don't know what it is but he likes her, a lot." Roman said and she flinched at his words before shrinking against the wall.

"I would have done anything for him.." She said in a low voice and Roman felt guilty. Her heart was in the right place but he couldn't force Dean to love her all because he felt guilty for her.

"Listen, I'm sorry that you had to go through all this but can you please just knock it off? The three of you are going through absolute hell over this and honestly I think Dean is getting it the worst. If you care about him that much then at least give him the chance to be happy." He said and the anger returned.

"I can not watch him be happy with her! She ruined my life." Layla said with such malice that Roman could feel it.

"Well at this point you have no choice. I'm going to make sure Dean changes his number and that you stay away from him." Roman said as he began to walk away.

"Roman please don't, I need him!" She said as the tears came harder. When he disappeared around the corner she sunk down against the wall in a fit of sobs. At this point she was willing to do anything to make Jess just as miserable as her. She stood and walked out into the parking lot to get some air and ended up sitting behind one of the poles out of site.

"Are you calm yet?" A.J asked with a hint of anger as she looked down at Jess with her arms crossed.

"I'll be better when that bitch is gone from my life." Jess said as she turned her head to look up at her. She was laying on the bench and staring up at the ceiling as her heart beat slowed and the anger inside her slowly faded away.

"Well you could have at least been the bigger person and _walked away_." A.J said and Jess stood up, needing to go out and get some fresh air.

"I know I should have but she had it coming." Jess said through clenched teeth as she threw open the door and made her way towards the parking lot entrance. As soon as the cool night air hit her she felt relieved as it washed over her hot skin and she closed her eyes as she began taking deep breathes.

"Jess?" The sound of her brothers voice made her eyes shoot open and she seen Matt making his way towards her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him getting defensive and reaching her hand behind her towards the door.

"I came to see how you were doing and take you home." He said as he stopped in front of her.

"I'm not coming home Matt. I like it here, I'm traveling and I'm happy. Why can't you understand that? Why does it bother you so much?" She asked and she watched him pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Because I'm worried about you. I don't want you to go through what Jeff and I did and I certainly don't want you going back to how things were." He said and she rolled her eyes as she scowled at him.

"I really fucking hate that about you Matt, I really do. You have no faith in me and you don't trust me at all well guess what, I'm 23 years old Matt and in 2 weeks I'll be 24 so do you know what that makes me? A grown up. I'm capable of making my own choices." She spat at him and he reached out and grabbed her arm as the anger sparked on his face.

"You just don't understand Jess." He said and she pulled back, stronger then she'd been before when he used to do this to her to drag her to her room in his house and lock her up.

"I'm not a child and I'm not an animal!" She yelled as the memories came flooding back and she used her foot to kick him in the gut before grabbing his head and smashing it off her knee. She heard a crack and Matt began moaning in pain as his hands shot up to cup his nose and when he stood up to look at her she could see blood dripping from between his fingers.

"Is this how you repay me!? You ungrateful little bitch! I have done everything for you to protect you and help you get the fuck off drugs and then you go and do this to me!? You'll regret this." He said as he pointed his finger at her in a menacing fashion. Jess felt the tears in her eyes as she turned and went back into the arena. She needed the comfort of Dean. Layla grinned as she seen and heard what was going on between the two Hardy's and a plan quickly presented itself to her.

"Dean?" She began to call through the halls as she fought her hardest to keep the tears inside. When he heard his name being called Dean emerged from the mens locker room only to find a shaken looking Jess looking around frantically and calling his name.

"Right here." He said as he walked over to her quickly. She threw her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest. Dean was stunned at first but quickly wrapped his arms around her as she began to cry. "Jess what's wrong? What's going on?" Dean asked as he began to stroke her hair in hopes of calming her down.

"It was Matt...grabbed me...I hit him...regret." She sobbed and Dean could make no sense of what she was saying.

"Jess I need you to stop crying and tell me what happened with Matt." He said as he pulled her off him and held her at arms length. She recapped what happened starting with Layla and finishing with the altercation with her brother and Dean's eyebrows furrowed as guilt and anger ran through him. He was angry that made had the balls to even show up and he felt guilty because he wasn't there to protect her. He pulled her into him again. "I should have been there and I'm sorry." He said as he began to sway with her in his arms.

"It's not your fault Dean. I know you would have been there if you could but you and I were fighting and I'm sorry about that so it's not your fault." She said and Dean leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"I promise nothing is going to happen to you." He said into her hair before he let her go. She looked up at him and nodded.

"Mind if I stay with you tonight? I don't wanna be alone." She said and Dean nodded his head. After the show had finished Jess drove back with the guys and she felt Dean grab her hand and hold onto it as if to let her feel that everything was going to be okay because he was going to make it okay. She grabbed a few things from her room before heading up to theirs.

"I talked to Layla and hopefully it was enough to make her back off." Roman said to Dean before Jess got back.

"Good because now things are finally going how I want them too." Dean said as a he cracked a smile. When he heard a light knock on the door he quickly went and answered it to see Jess standing there with her eyes to the floor. "Come on in." He said in a low voice and she walked past him inside the door before stopping and turning to look at him. She got up on her tip toes and kissed him, his arms wrapping around her waist as he brought her closer and lifted her feet from the ground as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Seriously guys?" Seth said as he walked past the door and noticed the two of them kissing. They broke apart and smiled at one another before going and climbing into Dean's bed. He pulled her back right up against his chest as he enfolded her in his arms, and for once in the past week, Dean was able to fall asleep without any trouble.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N Thank you everyone for the reviews, faves and follows! :) xoxo**

Jess was set for tag team action against Layla and A.J that Monday night and her partner was Kaitlyn. Brad told her that they were going to start her storyline that night and that the match would begin with her and Layla getting into a mini brawl in the middle of the ring as Jess form of payback for getting hit with a chair 2 weeks ago.

"Hey partner." Kaitlyn said as she appeared next to Jess who was sitting with the shield members in catering. "Thought I'd come and introduce myself seeing as we don't know each other." She said with a smile and Jess eyes lingered to the Divas championship that hung on her shoulder. Maybe one day she could hold that title and join the ranks of her brothers as a champion.

"It's nice to meet you." Jess said and she felt Deans arm wrap around the back of her chair as he leaned over and kissed the side of her forehead.

"Listen me and the guys gotta go but I'll see you later" He said and Kaitlyn just looked stunned as Dean stood with the other two and left.

"Are you and him together?" She asked as she used a finger to point between her and Dean who was walking from catering.

"I honestly have no idea but I think we are." She said unsure her self of what they had. She didn't want to say they were in case Dean thought otherwise.

"Oh, well that explains why Layla's pissed." She said nonchalantly hinting at a slight dislike of the diva herself. She took a seat next to Jess, slouching down as she made herself comfy and crossing legs. "So Jess Hardy, little sister to the Hardy boys. What was it like growing up with them?" She asked as she looked at her. Jess was a little unnerved by how confrontational the question sounded.

"It was interesting to say the least. I swear they only used me as a practice dummy when they'd lure me out with the promise of actually teaching me something." She said as she recalled all the bumps and bruises. They even broke her arm once and felt so guilty afterward they spent a little over a week acting like her servants but she always insisted she was fine and that it wasn't entirely there fault.

"Ever get into events free? Like house shows or even wrestle mania?" She asked.

"I got backstage a few times but that was it. I was only 13 or 14 and they really had to pull some strings because I was so young." Jess said as the memories came flooding back to her. It was overwhelming how much she'd forgotten, things she'd never thought of till now and she wanted to go back in time.

"Jess we better get ready our match is up next." Kaitlyn said snapping Jess out of her trip down memory lane. She stood with the other diva and went to change in the locker room before heading to gorilla position where Layla and A.J stood. Layla glared over at her before she cracked a cynical smile and A.J grabbed her firmly by the arm.

"Remember what I said." She heard A.J say through clenched teeth.

"Don't worry I'm saving it for the ring." Layla said back. A.J's theme music hit and they walked out to a chorus of boos. Then Kaityns hit and the two of them walked out together, Jess eyes locked on Layla as she dashed towards the ring and slid under the bottom ropes, getting into a standing position and grabbing Layla by the back of her thighs as she pulled her feet from underneath and ended up on top of her as she began to lay the beats on her.

"Looks like Jess has a little payback on her mind." Jerry said as he began to commentate the match.

"See that's her problem and her brothers were the same way. They don't think they just do." JBL said back. A.J and Kaitlyn grabbed them both and tore them apart as the ref rung the bell. Jess and Layla would start off only to run back at each other screeching and hitting as they tried to knock the other off her feet.

"This has turned into a straight out cat fight!" Jerry said in amusement. Layla finally pushed Jess off her and into the ropes before clothes lining her as she came back from the rebound. As Jess landed on her back Layla grabbed her right arm and brought around her neck to her left shoulder.

"I'm going to rip your fucking arm off!" Layla screeched in her ear. Jess used her other arm to elbow her in the ribs allowing her to free herself from her own arm choking her out.

"And I'm going to rip your head off." Jess said back as she picked her up by the hair and tossed her into the corner in a sitting position. She ran at her and jumped, putting her legs through the bottom and middle ropes as she gave her a bronco buster. As Jess stopped to get out Layla brought her fist up and punched her in the stomach knocking her backwards. Jess felt like she was going to puke as she held onto her stomach and tried to force the sick feeling down before she vomited everywhere. She began to crawl over to her corner when Layla grabbed her leg and pulled her back to the middle of the ring.

"I'm not finished with you yet bitch." She said as she grabbed her leg and pulled it up, bending it over her own leg and pulling as hard as she could. Jess struggled as she felt the pain in her leg being stretched way past what was normal. Slowly she turned onto her back and used her leg to kick Layla towards the ropes and allowed her time to get over to tag Kaitlyn in. Jess rolled under the bottom rope and used them to help her stand as Kaitlyn ran in there like a firecracker and unloaded on Layla but who she really wanted was A.J. She allowed Layla to make the tag and then the other two diva's went at it. They were relentless on each other as they it each other back and forth. Layla distracted the referee for a split second allowing A.J to get in a dirty shot and give her the upper hand as she threw Kaitlyn out of the ring and she landed hard on her back. A.J flew between the ropes as Kaitlyn stood but she moved out of the way and A.J hit the barricade as Kaitlyn began to lay the boots on her.

"This diva's match is just crazy!" Jerry said as the ref got to a 6 count and Kaitlyn grabbed A.J to slid her in the ring. They both looked exhausted and Jess held her hand out for Kaitlyn to tag.

"I have to agree with you there King, it's more than I expected from diva's." JBL said back. Kaitlyn and A.J had the same thing in mind as they hit the ropes on opposite ends of the ring and clothes lined each other, ending up on their backs and knocking the wind from each other.

"Right now it could be anyone's match, will they make the tag or go for the pin?" Jerry said in anticipation. Kaitlyn and A.J began to crawl towards their corners, Kaitlyn tagging in Jess just as A.J hit Layla's hand and both Diva's rushed in, refreshed and ready to go again. As they ran at each other Jess ducked under Layla's arm and hit the ropes coming back and giving her a flying elbow that knocked her down.

"Now we're going to see the high flying Hardy!" Jerry yelled as Jess jumped up to the top rope and jumped into a sen-ton bomb. She collided with Layla's midsection and her the diva cry out in pain. She stood and waited for Layla to come too, her back towards A.J who was yelling at Layla to get to her feet. When she was finally in a standing position Jess kicked her in the gut so she bent over and grabbed her in a head lock as she prepared to do her brothers famous finisher.

"Are we about to see a twist of fate?!" JBL asked as he watched on but A.J ran in the ring and hit Jess in the back off the head knocking both girls over as Kaitlyn came in and speared her, taking her out of the ring and getting into a mini brawl with her on the outside. Jess got back to her feet as Layla did and she went for it again, this time able to hit the twist of fate as the crowd erupted in cheers. She dropped to the mat and pulled Layla's leg up as the ref hit the mat with her and gave her the 3 count. Her theme music played and she felt this unbelievable rush inside her as she looked around. She was on cloud nine. Kaitlyn joined her in the ring and held her arm up as A.J grabbed Layla and pulled her out from the bottom ropes and make their way up the ramp.

"Oh my god we won." She said as she looked at Kaitlyn with the biggest smile.

"Yeah you did great!" She said as she looked at the awestruck diva. Layla was fuming as she looked into the ring. She wasn't about to be beat by her. She pushed A.J off her as she went back to the ring and pulled a chair out from underneath. As she slid in behind the two divas who were facing the crowd she took out Kaitlyn first with a chair to the back of her head. As Jess turned to fight back she got the chair directly in her face and as she fell to the mat she blacked out. Layla requested a microphone and stood in the middle of the ring above Jess motionless body.

"These girls right here are complete and utter _sluts. _They have no morals or standards and one of them is adrug addict. You can figure out who." Layla said with a smile as she dropped the mic and left the ring. The audience went to a stunned silence before they began to boo her as her and A.J made their way up the ring. Kaitlyn grabbed onto the back of her head as she inched her way towards Jess and began to shake her to try and get her to wake up. Jess stirred as black dots lined her vision.

"Come on let's go." She said as she pulled her along with her out of the ring. They held on to each other as they made their way back stage and Jess could hear A.J reaming Layla out.

"...can't go making accusations about people!" She yelled and Layla had her arms crossed as she stood in a defensive position.

"It's not an accusation it's the truth! I heard it myself" Layla argued back. Jess was confused as to what they had been talking about but pushed it to the back of her mind as Dean walked over to her.

"You okay?" He asked as he looked her over and she could feel Layla shooting daggers at her.

"Yeah I'm fine, just wanna go and lay down and sleep." She said as she felt the grogginess take hold of her.

"That could mean you have a concussion so let's get you to the trainer." He said as he draped his arm over her shoulder and walked her to the trainers. As she sat on the table the medic shone a light in her eyes.

"A slight concussion but nothing to be overly concerned about. Stay awake for the next two hours until it passes." He told her and she jumped down as she began to walk back to the locker room.

"Holy cow Jess you're all grown up." She heard someone say from behind her and she turned to see Triple H standing there looking at her with his arms open. She smiled and ran into his arms as he picked her up off the ground and spun her. "Been a while eh kiddo?" He asked as he set her down.

"I know how have you been? How are the girls?" She asked remembering how he asked her to look after Aurora for him and Steph one time while she was backstage. Since then they had 2 more girls that she hadn't met.

"Growing up fast. It's good to see you though, I seen your name on a list of of wrestlers trying to get in the biz so I had them mail you out a contract. Should have know you'd take after your brothers." He said with a slight chuckle. "Anyway I better get back to running things or Steph will have my head if something goes wrong. Hopefully I'll see you again soon." He said as he walked away. She had to admit that at the tender age of 14 she'd had a crush on him but it soon passed. She waited for Dean after his match and meet him by the parking lot door.

"I swear I didn't say anything to Layla." He said worried once he'd seen her.

"What do you mean?" She asked him and he realized she'd been knocked out cold in the middle of the ring when Layla took to the mic.

"Layla knows about your past drug addiction." He said looking at her. "But I didn't tell her." He said. Jess felt her blood run cold at the thought of Layla knowing,

"How did she find out?" She asked as she looked at him with wide eyes. This was bad, really bad.

"I don't know but you have to believe it wasn't me." Dean said pleading his innocence.

"Alright I believe but I have to figure out who told her." She said as they made their way to his car. Everything was just stressing her out lately and she wanted at least one of them laid to rest so she decided to start with Dean. "Dean what are we?" She asked looking at him as he drove. He was confused by the question.

"What do you mean?" He asked for her to clarify.

"I mean like are we together or are we friends? Something? Anything?" She prodded.

"Well what did you wanna be?" He asked and she rolled her eyes.

"I don't know. I kinda wanna be together but I don't wanna push it on you." She said and Dean cracked a smile.

"Well I wanna be together so then I guess we're together." He said and Jess sighed with relief. When they got to the hotel Dean pulled out his keys to open the door as Jess weaseled her into his arms and began to kiss him. When he got the door open he picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he used his foot to kick the door closed as he made his way into the room and plopped her down on the bed.

"Well you're in an awfully good mood." He said as he broke the kiss and looked down at her.

"Shut up and don't ruin it." She said as she pulled him back down and kissed him eagerly as her hands trailed up his shirt. She began to rub her hips against him as the want between her legs grew to an unbearable high. "Dean." She moaned out and he couldn't take it. His hands were quick to pull her shirt from over her head and unhook her bra. As her breasts sprung free he took them into his mouth one at a time and sucked on them before kissing his way down her stomach and stopping at the top of her pants. As much as he wanted to pull his own pants off and please them both he made sure to keep it about Jess first. He looked up at her as his fingers began to undo her pants and pull them off, their eyes locking and making the situation more intimate. He teased her through the fabric of her pants and watched her squirm, a smile coming to his lips as he breathing quickened.

"Oh god Dean." she moaned in a breathy whisper as her hands raked through his hair. He pulled them down slowly and watched as she writhed in agony, yearning for his touch and wanting badly for him to be inside her. His finger slowly slipped up and down her entrance a few times before he slipped it inside and began to pump slowly. She moved her hips trying to get more bu Dean used his hand to hold her down as he inserted another.

"Fuck Jess, you're so wet." He said as his fingers slid inside her without any friction. Then he brought his mouth closer and blew cold air on her and listened to her gasp before using his tongue to lick her.

"Oh Dean!" She moaned and he swears he's never heard anything sweeter than his name coming from those lips in such bliss. "Dean I need you now, please." She begged and he revealed in every moment of it. He made her beg for a few more minutes before he stood and worked on his own pants. As he slipped them down to his ankles Jess was already sitting up and reaching for his hard cock but he pushed her back down.

"Uh-uh, tonight's about you." He said as he lowered himself on top of her and positioned himself at her entrance. Jess was far to eager to start as she tried to lower herself onto him. He chuckled as he pinned her hips down and pushed himself up into her. Her hands were on his back instantaneously and already digging into him as she let out tiny gasps with every thrust he made into her.

"Am I hurting you?" He asked and she shook her head before her lips attached to his collarbone and began to nip and suck at it. Dean grabbed some of her hair and pulled so she was looking up at him and planted a hard kiss on her lips as he began to thrust harder and faster. Jess pushed against his shoulder as she tried to roll him over so she could be on top.

"I wanna be top for a bit." She said between moans and Dean gladly rolled with her and watched as she rode him, his hands grabbing and playing with her breasts, that were real he noticed. He raked his fingernails from her collarbone to the top of her breast and was entranced by the way she bobbed up and down on him, eyes closed and hands in her hair leaving her entire front on display for him. Suddenly her demeanor changed and he could tell she was close by the way she start to whimper and how her hands braced themselves against his chest. Dean sat up and wrapped his arms around her as he pulled her into his chest, their noses touching and lips only an inch apart.

"Look at me." He said in a gruff voice and Jess opened hers to find him staring into hers intently. "Cum Jess, all over my cock." He said and she couldn't take the sexy tone his voice had when he talked dirty. She felt the pressure in her abdomen and as it hit she went to throw her head back but Dean grabbed her head and forced her to keep looking at him. He felt her walls tighten around his cock as her riding became slower and sloppy, enough to send him over the edge as a slur of curse words left his mouth. After the high had left them, Dean laid Jess down slowly as they gasped for air. Their bodies were drenched in sweat as he began to trail kiss down the side of her face and neck, ending at her shoulder as he laid on his side and held her in his arms.

"I love you." He whispered out of no where making Jess turn to look at him shocked.

"What?" she asked. Dean needed to tell her how he felt and after what they just shared it just felt natural.

"I love you." He repeated and then got this pain in his stomach as realized maybe she didn't want to hear that he loved her. He watched as the tension softened from her face and she smiled up at him.

"I love you too." She said back and Dean felt himself relax as well as they laid in each others company naked. "Up for round 2?" She asked looking at him and he smiled.

"In a minute, I need to recuperate." He said as he waited for his member to be ready again. He could have made love to her for the whole night but settled for 4 times as Jess passed out after their fourth time. He was happy she did because he needed so much deserved sleep after going that long, which was actually a first for him. He was used to going twice and then calling it a night. But for some reason he found it hard to sleep after what transpired that night. Layla opened up a whole new can of worms for Jess that could cost her job and then Jess would have no choice but to go back to North Carolina and be subjected to her brother's wrath. Come hell or high water he was going to make sure that didn't happen.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N Thank you so much to everyone who's reviewed and followed and Faved! the story is almost done and it's thanks to you all for getting me this far! xoxox**

Jess birthday was only a few days away and Dean wanted to do something special for her so he got most of the superstars and divas in on a surprise party for her. The only thing now was to get her a gift and he had no clue where to start so in hopes of finding out he decided to call Jeff.

"Hey Jeff, how is everything?" He asked and Jeff thought it was odd that he'd be receiving a call from Dean considering his sister had her own phone.

"Good...whats up?" He asked on the other line.

"I'm throwing Jess a surprise party and was hoping you'd come and be part of the surprise." Dena said and Jeff chuckled.

"Of course man, I haven't missed her birthday once and I don't plan on it." Jeff said.

"Also one more thing. I'm trying to figure out what to get her so could you give some some insight as to what she likes?" Dean asked hoping Jeff didn't think it was weird that one man was asking another man about what to buy for a girl.

"Shoot man you called the right guy. Her favorite color is yellow, she loves sweaters, she loves Jewelry that have tiny leaf charms because it reminds her of Autumn which is her favorite season. Hmmm what else..." He said trailing off and Dean just stood there dumbfounded as he listened to Jeff and took mental notes. "Oh! She's loved Dogwood flowers ever since we was kids, hates stuffed animals with a passion so don't even go there and she's a sucker for cheesy romance movies." Jeff finished.

"Alright well thank you Jeff, oh and before you hang up, what are you getting her? I don't wanna chance getting her something similar unless I think it go with whatever you get." Dean said.

"I already picked her up a bracelet with a bunch of addable charms that reminded me of her, I already know it's corny Dean." Jeff said predicting some sort of smart ass comment.

"Alright well the party is being held in the hotel dinning hall and I'll see you when you get here, later." Dean said as he hung up the phone. "This is going to be hell." He said as he rubbed his hands down his face and set out to find a woman capable of helping him find the perfect gift.

"Listen A.J you're either on my side or hers so you better chose fast." Layla said giving her friend an ultimatum. A.J let out a frustrated sigh as she threw herself backwards onto the bed.

"Layla I already told you I don't want any part of this. I understand how you're feeling but my god there are some many other guys out there and you're hung up on Dean. Drop it already." She said getting overly annoyed with her friend.

"A.J she is a drug addict." Layla said bluntly and A.J stood up to stare at her with wide eyes.

"Here we go again, I already told you to stop making false accusations!" A.J yelled now full out pissed.

"They aren't false it's the truth. Have you seen her arms? They're covered in scars!" She yelled as she recalled the many times her long sleeve ring shirt would pull up to about her mid forearm and put on display little blotchy white scars.

"Layla those could be from anything like chicken pox or some type of skin disorder!" A.J yelled coming to Jess defense.

"Her brother even said it. She did drugs A.J, it's a cold hard fact." Layla said and A.J just looked down at her hands while shaking her head.

"And what do you wanna do Layla? Condemn someone for something they did a while ago? You're talking about making someone lose their job over something they don't even do anymore." A.J said as she went over the plan Layla had laid out in hopes that A.J would turn to her side and help her get rid of Jess once and for all. "You can count me out. And be thankful that I'm not running to her right now to tell her of what you're planning to do because I know that it won't work." A.J said as she stood and looked at Layla disgusted. "Grow up." She left the room and heard Layla begin to throw things around the hotel room as she headed back to her own. Layla was determined to find someone willing to help her take out Jess and only one name came to mind that would add insult to injury.

"Hey A.J!" Dean called as the elevator doors opened and he seen the pissed off looking diva heading towards her room. She turned on her heel and glared at him.

"What?" She asked viciously and Dean held his hands up in front of him showing he came in peace.

"I just wanted your help with something." He said calmly as he kept a safe distance away from her. He knew how she was when she was angry, a little spitfire everyone called her.

"And what would that be with?" She asked as she crossed her arms.

"I need to go shopping for a birthday present." He said and A.J smiled at him as her body relaxed.

"It's for Jess isn't it? Let's go then, I need to get her one too." She said as she grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him to the parking lot where his car was. They drove to the city mall and Dean looked around in a daze, unsure where to start first.

"So what did you have in mind of getting her?" A.J asked as they began walking around and browsing stores.

"That's what I brought you for." He said turning his attention to her and she rolled her eyes.

"You're telling me you brought me here without a single clue as to what you wanted? You better start racking that brain of yours before you go home empty handed." A.J said turning her attention back to window shopping.

"Well I've already ordered her a sweater with Believe in the shield on the back in yellow writing and Ambrose's girl on the front." He said and A.J scoffed.

"That is cute yet at the same time so corny." A.J said as she began to chuckle. Dean spotted a jewelry store and made his way towards it as A.J followed behind curiously. "So your pick is jewelry I see." A.J said as she gazed around at all the sparkling rings but Dean was busy looking at necklaces.

"Can I help you?" A staff member asked noticing how zoned in Dean had become.

"Yes I'm looking for something that has any sort of leaf on it." He said and A.J looked at him oddly.

"Why not a diamond or a heart? Why a leaf?" She asked coming to stand next to him.

"Jeff told me that Jess loves jewelry with leaves on them." He said as the girl behind the counter disappeared into the back and came out holding a necklace in her hands.

"Is this something along the lines of what you're looking for?" She asked as Dean glanced at the gold in her hand. At the bottom of the thin gold chain was a pendant sized upside down leaf with diamonds lining the left side and one dropping off the tip.

"That's perfect, I'll take it." He said as he made the purchase. A.J had to admit it was a very beautiful necklace and she was slightly jealous.

"Alright I'll be back in a minute, I seen something back there that I thought she'd love." A.J said as Dean sat on one of the benches and waited for her. While waiting there his eyes went back towards the jewelry store and he wondered if one day he'd ever go back in search of a ring. The thought brought a smile to his face and he already knew what the answer was.

Matt had been following RAW to every place they went in order to keep an eye on Jess. He loved his baby sister dearly but she shouldn't be out there on her own to do her own thing. He was terrified that something was going to happen to her, that she'd end up back on drugs, or pregnant or even worse, dead. Matt knew there was something wrong with him because as much as he loved his sister he also resented her, hated her badly. She was the favorite, the baby, the one that always needed to be protected by Daddy and Jeff because she was a girl. Not to mention their poor mother who died shortly after giving birth to her. She robbed him of everyone he loved, stole their affection and praise from him only for her to go and destroy her life and theirs.

"She let us down Dad, she used you for every last cent and you gave it to her because she was daddy's little girl, well I saw through her!" He yelled up at the ceiling as he paced around the room, the frustration building up. "She tore our family apart and she didn't care and then she goes and almost dies on me? When will it ever be enough, when will she stop trying to deliberately hurt me. I'm gonna get her back for that, she's gonna hurt too." He said as tears formed in his eyes and he sat down on the bed. There was a knock on his door and he looked over at it cautiously. Probably someone coming to complain about the noise he was making. Slowly he got up and stopped just in front of the door. "Who is it?" He asked.

"It's Layla, we used to work together." A female voice called through the door and he faintly remembered her from Extreme Expose. He gripped the door handle and thought about whether or not he should open the door, this was in fact the woman who kept beating his sister with a chair, but he turned the knob and pulled the door open as the short woman stood in front of him.

"Can I help you?" He asked her and she looked around before slipping inside his room without permission.

"Actually I think we can help each other." She said sparking his interest.

"And what exactly are we helping each other with?" Matt asked as he watched her move some of his dirty clothes off the couch while making a face before sitting down.

"Getting rid of your sister." She said and Matt looked at her unsure.

"Now you see you want to get rid of her whereas I want to inflict emotional pain on her and destroy her happiness." Matt said bluntly garnering a sadistic smile from Layla.

"Please tell me you're being serious because I want to do that same." Layla said as her eyes lit up at the thought and Matt only chuckled at her.

"Why on earth would you want to hurt my sister more than I do?" He questioned as he looked her over.

"She stole my boyfriend and I want him back." She said as her smile slowly turned to a scowl.

"Really? That's it? She stole your boyfriend? How about you and me can get on the same page when she steals more than just your boyfriend, try half of your family and friends, try paying back thousands of dollars of your _hard earned money_ to a drug dealer she couldn't pay and then try watching your own flesh and blood almost die before your eyes. What she did to you was nothing compared to what she did to me but sure we can help each other." He said and Layla stood to her feet with a smile.

"I promise we'll get her back for all of that." Layla said as she caressed his face and gave him a seductive look. "So what first?" She asked.

"Her birthday's coming up and I've got a big surprise for her." Matt said as he told Layla about what he was going to do.

**A/N Just to clarify in case anyone is confused with the way I've written why Matt is upset with Jess, it's because growing up he felt like she was constantly taking people away from him and that they always favored her more than him so he always resented that about her, and then he felt as though she was taking advantage of their dying father for his money that she would use to buy drugs and then he hated her even more for almost dying because he felt she was his responsibly and she was just rebelling against him and then Jeff just babied her even more showing that favoritism again that sparked up the jealousy and hatred he'd felt towards her for so long. If this makes sense either :/ **


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N Thank you so much for the reviews! Please don't be mad at me for this chapter!**

"Happy Birthday." Dean murmured against Jess skin as he felt her stir inside his arms. He trailed kisses against her bare shoulder and felt her sigh in contentment before turning to face him and smiling.

"Thank you." She said as she planted a soft kiss on his lips and reached her hand up to push some of his blond hair out of his eyes. Dean was tired, only managing to get a little over 4 hours of sleep because once Jess had passed out he slipped from the room in order to finish some last minute decorating that took him longer then expected because he wanted everything to be perfect.

"So what does the birthday girl wanna do? Breakfast perhaps?" He asked as he untangled his arms from around her and stretched himself out before throwing his legs over the side of the bed.

"Or we could stay in bed." She replied in a seductive voice as she lightly slid her fingers down his spine making him smile. When he turned to look back at her he seen her hand moving beneath the blanket before resurfacing holding the pair of panties she'd been wearing to bed and tossing them.

"Well if you insist." Dean said crawling back into the bed making Jess giggle as he laid on top of her. He kissed her forehead as he looked over at the clock but that was all and she looked up at him confused.

"What's wrong?" She asked him as he quickly got out of bed.

"I thought it was way earlier than that. I got a surprise for you so we better hurry up and get ready." Dean said as he scrambled to find dressy clothes to throw on.

"Would I have time for a quick shower?" Jess asked with excitement as she jumped out of bed.

"It would have to be pretty quick." He said as he pulled on some pants and then socks. Jess ran past him and into the washroom and moments later he heard the water start running. He'd have to be quick to make it back in time before Jess got out. He pulled on a shirt and quietly left the room as he made his way down to the lobby.

"Surprise!" Everyone yelled and Dean nearly had a heart attack.

"Jesus, I came down here to tell you all that I'm bringing her down in a few minutes." He said as he tried to calm his heart beat. Chuckles emanated from around the room as he smiled at them. "Thanks for coming though guys." He said.

"Bring her down, we want cake!" Randy Orton called from the back making Dean laugh.

"Alright I'm going to get her now, hopefully she's ready." He said as he made his way back up stairs. He was afraid that people would still be arriving but everyone seemed to be accounted for.

"Where did you go?" Jess asked when she heard Dean come back into the room. She was wearing a beautiful light blue summer dress and was just putting in earrings. He couldn't help but notice they were giant dangling leaves.

"Just to see someone. You almost done?" He asked and she reached into her bag and pulled out a ton of makeup.

"Just let me add the finishing touches." She said as Dean walked over and pushed her hand down as she went to apply eyeshadow.

"You don't need makeup." He told her and she looked up at him as her cheeks began to go light pink. "Shall we?" He asked as he held his arm out to her. Jess stood and took it as dean lead her downstairs and when they got to the door her placed his hand over her eyes as he lead her inside.

"Surprise!" Everyone yelled when he removed his hand and Jess was shocked as she looked around the room. Jeff made his way through the crowd holding a small square present as a woman trailed behind him.

"Happy birthday." He said with a smile as he placed a kiss to her temple. "I want you to meet Beth." He said as he turned and looked at the woman he brought with him.

"Hi it's nice to met you, Jeff talks about you non-stop." She said as she held her hand out to Jess.

"Hopefully good things." Jess said back making Beth laugh.

"Got you a present." Jeff said holding the poorly wrapped gift out to her. He never could get it quite right. Jess felt like a little kid at Christmas as she tore the bright pink paper off to reveal a white box. She popped off the lid and looked down at the bracelet with a smile.

"Jeff it's beautiful thank you!" She said throwing her arms around his neck. When she released she took the bracelet out and looked at the little charms that dangled from it before putting it around her and trying to latch it.

"Here let me help." Jeff said noticing her trouble and clipping the tiny thing together. "I'm happy you like it. But Beth's my girlfriend and I just really wanted you to meet her." Jeff said looking at his girlfriend proudly as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Well you're not the only one. Me and Dean are together too." Jess said giving a side glance towards Dean who was off mingling around the room. Jeff looked at her with shocked eyes that slowly turned into a smug expression..

"Who's the best brother in the world?" He began to chide her and Jess just rolled her eyes as she smiled at him. Jeff advanced on her with his hands out.

"Jeff don't-" She began but his was already poking her sides as she fell into fits of laughter.

"Say it!" He called over her laughs.

"You're the best, you're the best!" She cried as she tried to get away from him but ended up stumbling backwards and landing flat on her butt. Jeff had never seen his sister so happy in his life and it warmed his heart to the core. He finally had his sister back. People around looked at the fallen diva and chuckled as they witness the display between her and her brother.

"Up-si-daisy." Jeff said as he took hold of her hand and pulled her to her feet as Dean joined her side.

"Jeff, man, I'm happy you made it." Dean said as he held out his hand for the Hardy.

"Thanks for inviting me." Jeff said with a smile as they shook hands.

"I'll be right back I'm gonna get the cake." Deans aid as he disappeared into the crowd of people. Soon they parted as Dean made his way through them like Moses and they were the sea.

"Happy Birthday to you." Dean began in a loud voice and soon everyone had chimed in as Jess took her place in front of the giant cake that had 24 candles burning brightly at her. With each candle added onto the cake every time her birthday rolled around since her O.D, she was grateful for it, and when everyone stopped singing she closed her eyes but didn't know what to wish for. She was extremely happy with everything that happened in the past few months that she found nothing to wish for so she inhaled deeply and blew until every candled went out.

"Happy birthday to you..." A man sang softly from the doorway and everyone turned to see Matt leaning in the doorway with a bottle of Jack Daniels in his hand. "Happy birthday Dear Jessica." He drew out the a on her name before taking another swig from the bottle. "Happy birthday to you." He finished out in a softer voice.

"Matt get out of here." Jeff said to his drunken older brother causing him to smirk. Matt pushed himself off the door frame as he stumbled over to where his sister stood with Dean and Jeff placing themselves between the two.

"Now now boys, it's my little sisters birthday and I want to give her my gift." He said with a smirk as he pulled a beautifully wrapped gift from the inside of his jacket and held it out to her. Jess took it with trembling hands and was unsure of whether or not she wanted to open it.

"Thanks." She uttered as she looked from him to the box. The lid came off easily and Jess peered inside only to notice a folded piece of paper sitting on top of tissue paper that was protecting something else underneath.

"Go on and read it." Matt said as he watched her with anticipation. Jess unfolded the paper and skimmed it as her eyes went wide and tears formed in her eyes.

"I've been fired?!" She asked in disbelief as her eyes shot to her brother who was now chuckling.

"Now get to the other gift." He said and Jess tore the tissue paper out and let it drop to the floor as she gazed back into the box. Inside was a lighter, spoon, a pack of needles and a baggie of heroine. Everything around Jess seemed to be move fast around her as Jeff and Dean came to her side to see what the elder hardy had got and Jeff launched himself at him in a fit of rage as Jess felt herself begin to shut down. She felt like she'd just hit rock bottom again as she held the box in her trembling hands and tears slowly trailed down her face. Dean was quick to join in on the action, desperately wanting a piece of Matt as all the superstars in the room did their best to tear the three men apart and keep them that way.

"I swear to god you piece of shit you're dead!" Dean yelled as he fought against Roman and Seth and a few other people that were trying to hold him back.

"She's our sister, our little sister!" Jeff yelled and Dean could tell he was on the verge of tears by the way his voice cracked when he shouted. He really felt bad for Jeff having to be related to such a monster and doing his best to protect his sister from him but Matt always seemed to find a way.

"Get him out of here!" Dean yelled and as the people holding Matt dragged him from the room his cynical laughter echoed in both his and Jeffs mind.

"Jess?" Jeff called out in a panic as his eyes darted around the room. Dean began to look as well considering he was a lot taller than most people in the room but she had disappeared.

"Jeff she's not here." He said and Jeff looked along the floor and at the tables making dean confused.

"She took the fucking box!" He said in frustration as he slammed his hands down on the nearest table.

"We'll find her. Let's check my room first." Dean said as him and Jeff set out in a hurry. Jess locked the bathroom door in the hotel room as she sunk to the floor, the box laying in her lap as she cried. This was the ultimate slap in the face. Fired on her birthday by her own brother and then being handed the one thing she vowed never to touch again and yet there it was staring her in the face. As she pulled the baggie out she couldn't help but notice how much was actually in there, more then she'd ever bought in her entire life which meant only one thing. Her brother was literally asking her to kill herself and as she slowly went numb from all the pain she was okay with it. She opened the package of needles before grabbing the spoon and lighter. She put a heft amount of heroine onto it before adding a little water and heating it up. She used the fresh needle to suck it up and then placed the tip against her skin. She hesitated. Did she really want to go through this again? She winced as the needle punctured her skin and she pushed the syringe down as the yellowish brown liquid made it's way into her blood stream. As she began to prepare another batch to inject the high began to take over her slowly and things began so much easier at that point.

"Happy birthday to me..."She said in a scratchy voice as she injected the third amount. This was it, she could feel it coming over her like the calm before a storm.

"Jess?" She heard Dean and Jeff shout far off in the room through the door as her head lulled back and rolled. Her eyes began to close as black dots clouded her vision and she faintly heard the door handle jiggle.

"It's locked!" Jeff shouted and Jess crawled over towards the toilet as she felt like she was going to vomit. She grabbed onto the sink to try and pull herself up but couldn't and ended up knocking things off the counter.

"Jess get away from the door!" She was too far gone at that point to decipher who was speaking as she slouched over the the toilet cover and felt her limbs go dead. She closed her eyes as her blood pumped loudly in her ears until something much louder began to thud along with it. She felt sleepy and and then it felt like her insides were burning as her body lurched forward and she puked. She threw herself backwards and hit the wall hard as the door splintered before flinging open. 2 blurred forms made their way inside and knelt in front of her, one of them touching her face.

"Jess wake up!" Dean yelled as he hit her face. Her eyes were open a crack but she was unresponsive. "Call 911!" Dean yelled at Jeff who was crying as he hit the hard cement wall of the bathroom. He quickly pulled out his cell phone and called for an ambulance. Dean picked Jess up in his arms and she was as limp as a rag doll as he removed her from the bathroom and placed her onto the bed.

"Please Jess." He said desperately as he pushed the hair from her face. "Jeff get me a wet clothe or something." Dean said as Jeff rushed around to find anything before returning with a soaked shirt. Dean began to clean the vomit off her as a tear slipped down his cheek and he began to whimper. "Don't leave me Jess, please." He begged as he covered her body with his own. The paramedics rushed into the room minutes after Jeff made the call and Dean was forced to move away from Jess.

"Give me vitals." A dark skinned woman demanded as she pulled a stethoscope from her bag and placed it against her chest while a another woman pulled out a blood pressure pump and began to work on it. "Heart rate dropping and breathing is shallow." The first woman said as she looked to the other.

"Blood pressure is very low." She said as a stretcher was brought in.

"We need to get her out of here stat!" The woman yelled and people were quick to load Jess onto the stretcher. Dean and Jeff watched in shocked horror as she rushed out of the room but followed behind quickly.

"You go with her Jeff and I'll meet you at the hospital." Dean said as they loaded her into the back of the ambulance where a crowd had gathered, many consisting of the party guests. Dean pushed his way through when someone grabbed his shoulder firmly but he shoved them away.

"Let me drive." Romans voice said he took in his friends shaken state. He handed him the keys as they ran for his car and Dean barely even realized Seth was also there until he heard the back door open and he turned to see him. Jeff climbed in with his sister as the paramedics went to work.

"Get a breathing tube in her right now." They said and he watched as they shoved a tube down his sisters throat in order to keep her breathing.

"Her pupils are dilated, we're losing her fast!" another called as they peeled her eyelids open and shone a light in them and Jeff was sick to his stomach. They hooked her up to a heart rate monitor and Jeff just stare at the screen, at how weak the line was indicating his sisters heart slowly stopping and he couldn't handle it.

When they arrived they rushed her into emergency and Jeff was forced to wait in the waiting room. Dean arrived minutes later with Seth and Roman hot on his heels. Jeff's eyes were swollen and red from crying.

"How is she?" Dean asked hoping for good news but Jeff just looked up at him with so much pain that Dean could feel it.

"Not good Dean, everything slowly stopping. Her heart, her lungs." Jeff said and Dean felt his whole word begin to crumble around him as he gripped the back of his neck with both of his hands and tried to fight off the tears. He tried so hard to protect her from Matt but she still ended up here and Dean could do nothing to help her.

"Jeff I'm sorry." Dean said as the tears began to roll down his cheeks. Jeff stood and pulled him into his arms.

"It's not your fault. We tried so hard and Matt still won." Jeff said as he tried his best to comfort him. Now all that was left was for the 4 of them to wait. Dean sad multiple times that Seth and Roman could leave but they were adamant about staying. They were all hollow and on edge as the hours ticked by with no news, the tears finally stopping but the feeling of hopelessness remained.

"Is there a Mr. Hardy?" A nurse called into the waiting room making them all perk up.

"That'd be me." Jeff said as he stood and made his way to her quickly. "How is she?" He asked and the nurse looked tired as she glanced at the clipboard in her hand before handing it over to Jeff to read. As his eyes skimmed over what it said his trembling fingers slowly let there grip go of it as it clattered against the floor and echoed through the halls as Jeff dropped to his knees.


	19. Chapter 19

**Thank you so much for all your support with this story! I'm happy (yet sad) to say this is the final chapter, thank you all once again :) xoxo**

Her chest rose and feel slowly as Jeff made his way into her room followed by Dean. By the looks of it she was sleeping but as soon as Jeff made his way along the side of her bed she could feel the heat from his hand that he held only centimeters above her skin making her eyes flutter open.

"You're in deep trouble little lady." Jeff said in a low voice as Jess flung herself into his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Jeff I'm sorry!" She said as Jeff held her tightly against his chest, not getting enough of the feeling of being able to hold his sister.

"You died Jess. For 5 minutes you were officially dead." Jeff said into her ear in the most heartbreaking voice she'd ever heard and then he loosened his grip as he pulled away and looked at her. Dean hung back close to the door to allow them to have their moment.

"All I remember is a jolt of energy and then waking up in unbearable pain." She said.

"Yeah well right now they have you on a low dose of morphine to get you prepped for surgery because your left kidney failed." Jeff said looking into his sisters horrified eyes.

"When do I have surgery?" She asked him.

"In about an hour but I bugged them to let me and Dean come see you before you went cause I just had to." Jeff said.

"Oh my god, Dean!" Jess yelled as she threw the blankets off her and went to stand up.

"I'm right over here." His voice called from behind her and she stopped as he walked over to her not knowing how to feel. He wanted to cry and scream and hug her and yell at her.

"Dean..." his name was a whisper on her lips as she reached her hand out and caressed his cheek while he lifted his to cover hers.

"That was one of the worst things I've ever had to go through in my entire life. You scared me Jess, to the point where I didn't know what to do." Dean said and she could see the tears forming in his eyes and she knew it was all her fault so she dropped her hand from his face. "We found you in the bathroom already halfway dead and I took you to the bed, you were so cold so I tried to warm you with my own body heat." He continued as a tear slipped down his cheek and he wiped it away. "I'm really mad at you." He finished before looking at her.

"I understand-" She began thinking this was his way of saying goodbye and that he never wanted to see her again.

"No you don't understand. I almost had to _watch_ you die, I almost had to _help_ your brother bury you. I didn't want to do that with the woman I love. I'm just... I'm so happy you're alive." He said as he pulled her into his arms. Jess felt relieved as she hugged him back.

"I don't know what to do any more guys. I don't have a job and I really don't want to go back to Carolina as mush as I love you Jeff." She said as she let go of Dean and turned her attention to her brother.

"I know and I don't blame you or want to bring you back there for the exact reason that Matt is still there, I just don't know what to do." He said as he looked at his sister hopeless as Dean got a thought.

"Live with me in Ohio." He said catching them both off guard. "It's a safe distance from Carolina with you still being able to be close to your brother if you ever wanted to see him." He said trying o argue his point.

"I don't know, that's pretty far and Carolina is the only place I know that's home." She said looking between the two men.

"Honestly, I'm all for it. The only flaw I can see is that you and I won't see each other as often but I can handle that as long as I know you're safe." Jeff said as Jess bit her lower lip anxiously. "I can't always be there to hold your hand Jess." Jeff said with a chuckle as he watched her. She had always relied on him to always be there.

"I know it's just you're the only family I have and I don't want to leave you alone." She said looking at him.

"But I'm not alone, and neither are you. I have Beth and you have Dean. Our lives are going in different paths and now it's time for them to branch off and both of us to live our own lives." Jeff said trying to explain it to her. "I know it'll be hard at first but I'm always a phone call or really long drive away." He said trying to soothe her.

"I promise nothing will happen to you. I'll even move into one of those stupid little picture perfect suburb towns if it makes you feel any better." Dean added in making her smile.

"Excuse me Gentlemen but we need to take her in now." A nurse said coming in followed by a bunch of other people in medical gear as they wheeled in machines. Jeff and Dean both kissed the sides of her head before exiting the room leaving her to worry as they set her up and wheeled her into the O.R.

It had been weeks since her operation and she was finally cleared to go home, but she hadn't exactly been there yet as she stepped onto the plane with Dean.

"Don't be nervous, you'll love Ohio as much as Carolina I mean, they aren't that different." Dean said as he noticed her chewing her lower lip and gripping the armrest before taking her hand in his.

"I probably will when you're home but I'm gonna miss you when you're gone." She said turning to him and giving him a faint smile.

"I've got one month with you and I promise every time I'm home I'll make it all up to you." He said with a suggestive eyebrow raise making her blush. It wouldn't take them long from the city they were currently in, about an hour maybe, but Jess still couldn't shake the anxiety. Would this be another place Matt would come and find her after she'd settled in and destroy her roots there too? She didn't want that to happen because in all the time she's ever had a boyfriend she had a feeling deep down in her heart that Dean was the on for her. He's stood by her through everything, even the ordeal on her birthday, and now he was sacrificing his home to her. If that wasn't love then Jess had no idea what the hell it was but she liked it anyway.

"So what part of town do you live in?" She asked hoping to get a slight feel for the place before they got there.

"I live right in Cincinnati but don't worry, it's the nice part of town where crime rarely happens." He said grinning at her. "My place is on the outskirts by the river so it's a good distance from the main inner part of the city so if you wanna go shopping or anything it'll take like 30 – 45 minutes to drive." He said as the plane made it's descent. Jess grabbed a quick peek out the window of the giant city before she became a part of it when they touched down and grabbed their things.

"Oh my god Dean this is so beautiful." Jess said as he pulled into the driveway of a bungalow house. It wasn't huge but it wasn't exactly small either, it was some where in between. And he wasn't kidding when he said it was right by the river which sat directly behind the house at the bottom of a dipped down slope that she guessed was his backyard.

"It's not much but I call it home." Dean said proudly of his house. "Hopefully you will too." He added smiling over at her as he grabbed their bags from the trunk. She still had some time to go before making a full recovery, still having 7 staples in her back where they took out her kidney. When they entered the house a tiny dog came running towards the front door wagging it's tail as it jumped onto Dean's leg happily.

"Hey Jade." He said picking up the little Scottish terrier as it began to lick his face. "This is my baby, she's a little sweetheart." Dean said as Jess began to pet the soft black dog who licked at her hands. He put Jade down before grabbing the bags again and giving her a quick tour of the house. "I also have a cat around here somewhere but he's fat and lazy so you won't be seeing him much, but his names Oliver." Dean said opening the door to his bedroom where the cat was passed out on his bed before lifting his head at the sudden intrusion.

"Jesus what do you feed him!" Jess said noticing the pot belly cat who looked more like giant round ball of fur.

"The cat is spoiled as hell. My mom usually comes over to take care of the animals when I'm away and he is her favourite thing in this entire world." Dean said as he began to put everything away.

"Mind if I go and look around?" Jess asked as Dean preoccupied himself.

"Not at all, get to know the place." He said without turning to look at her. She was itching to get out back and look around. She found a sliding glass door in the kitchen that lead onto a back deck with the perfect view and as she was slipping out the dog went with her, barking as she ran down the step and began to run around the yard. She marveled at the sight in front of her, unable to take her eyes off the way the light hit the waters surface making it look about 3 colours.

"Pretty ain't it." Dean said coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her gently against the deck railing.

"I'll give you this, Carolina has nothing on this." Jess said and they fell into momentary silence, one that didn't need words because the two were comfortable with each other.

"Would you ever marry me Jess?" Dean asked out of the blue and Jess turned in his arms to look at him confused.

"Where did that come from?" She said back at the sudden question. She'd never given thought to it in her whole life because in reality she never really did want to get married, every guy she dated before Dean just didn't measure up to what she wanted in a husband and she lost hope.

"Just yes or no." Dean said looking into her eyes as she began to think. She loved Dean and the thought of marrying him sounded fine to her.

"Yeah I would." She said and she watched as a smile graced his lips.

"Then do it, marry me Jess." He said as he pulled a box out of his back pocket and opened it to her. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"Aren't you suppose to be on one knee?" She questioned having seen too many romance movies and Dean just rolled his eyes as he smiled.

"You really gonna make me get down on my knee?" He questioned her only for her to nod and fold her arms with a smile. She watched in satisfaction as Dean rolled his eyes before lowering himself in front of her and holding the box out to her. "_Will_ you marry me?" He asked her and she chuckled.

"Of course I will now get up and kiss me." She said as Dean pulled the ring free and stuck it on her finger before standing and leaning down to kiss her. Jess couldn't fight the happiness she felt inside, no more was she Dean's girlfriend, she was his fiance and soon the be wife.

"I gotta tell Jeff." She said breaking free of him and running into the house with a gleeful squeal and Dean only smiled as he watched her and shook his head. Some things will never change.

**The End**


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